ST. LOUIS — A professor who suffered broken bones during his arrest at a protest on Washington University’s campus last spring is suing the university.

Stephen Tamari, 65, alleges the school’s police broke nine of his ribs after his hands were zip-tied at a pro-Palestine protest on Washington U.’s campus on April 27. He’s suing the university for battery.

The protest was one of many held on campuses throughout the U.S. as students protested the war in Gaza. Washington U. had one of the highest numbers of arrests after the April protest, which called on the university to cut ties with Boeing Co., a major supplier of military equipment to Israel and a leading employer in the region.

Video of Tamari’s arrest spread widely on social media and showed St. Louis County and university police officers wrestle Tamari to the ground, with a university officer driving his knee into the top of Tamari’s back using the “full force of his body weight,” the suit states.

People are also reading…

Tamari was tackled after he took out his phone to record the arrests, “fearing for the safety of the students,” he said in the suit. Tamari is a professor emeritus of history at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.

Tamari spent two nights in the hospital and continues to suffer from his injuries, the suit states.

In a statement Thursday responding to the lawsuit, Washington U. officials said the arrests occurred after protesters refused to leave and attempted to set up an encampment on campus, which is private property.

“A number” of individuals physically resisted arrest and interfered with police officers as they were conducting arrests — including Tamari, university officials said.

“Mr. Tamari, who has no affiliation with WashU, was moving in closely behind and reaching around officers outside of their line of sight as they were conducting arrests, creating a dangerous situation for all involved, including himself,” the university’s statement reads. “He aggressively resisted arrest, including by kicking an officer. His lawsuit does not accurately portray his role in instigating his unfortunate situation.”

“It’s unfortunate that he has decided to pursue legal action for a situation that was completely avoidable had he simply left after repeatedly being told to do so,” university officials continued. “We will vigorously defend the university in this matter.”

Police arrest Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville professor Steve Tamari on Saturday, April 27, 2024, on Washington University's campus in St. Louis. Dozens were arrested during the protest.

Tamari deferred comment to his attorneys when reached by phone Thursday. One of his attorneys, Javad Khazalei, declined to comment.

In all, 100 people were arrested at the April protest, including 23 students, four faculty members and three staff.

Accounts of the protest have differed widely. Protesters have described the event as a peaceful gathering until police moved in. But university officials at the time characterized the protest as a threatening one, in which some protestors behaved aggressively or yelled antisemitic chants.

After a short march, according to Tamari’s suit, protestors gathered in a green space near the front of Washington U.’s entrance, which was “not atypical” as Washington U. has a “long history of allowing peaceful protests on its campus.”

Tamari stayed on the edge of the crowd and planned to leave when police moved in for arrests, he said in the suit. Tamari alleged the university’s director of law enforcement operations pointed him out to police for arrest after he took out his phone.

“Professor Tamari was doing nothing wrong,” the suit states. “He was merely documenting the use of force against peaceful students by sworn law enforcement officers, most of whom are public employees.”

In an interview with the Post-Dispatch in May, Tamari said he didn’t expect the protest would lead to such a police response.

“I don’t think anybody anticipated, certainly I didn’t, the swift and brutal and uncompromising nature of the reaction on college campuses,” Tamari said.

Tamari is seeking compensatory damages and court costs.

Editor’s note : This story was updated after publication online with comment from Washington University.

Want to see more like this?

Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox.