Thousands march in Baltimore protesting police brutality and the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota at the hands of local police, on Monday. Mass demonstrations have taken place nationwide since the incident took place. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM

As a sign of solidarity with the Texans who are protesting George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, criminal-defense attorneys in the Lone Star State's major cities have pledged pro bono representation for arrested protesters.

Texas attorneys in Austin, Dallas and San Antonio are joining a national trend in which criminal-defense lawyers are taking cases of protesters' cases for free. Other attorneys who have done the same hail from California, New York, Florida, and other states.

"I thought it was the best and easiest way to do my part in helping change these disparities and fix the system," said Ted Wenske, partner in Wenske & Reyes in San Antonio. "I've seen a lot of police interactions with a lot of different people. I've seen disparities in how people of color and how white people are treated. It's time for change."

Wenske has accepted two cases of protesters arrested in San Antonio on Monday and Tuesday nights. He said one of his clients was leaving a protest and was pushed by a bicycle officer and forcibly detained, even through two witnesses told Wenske that "he was walking away peacefully." Another client was running away from police who were firing rubber bullets, and he picked up a charge.

Austin solo practitioner Tycha Kimbrough is now talking with 10 potential clients, and waiting them to sign engagement agreements, she said. She noted she's seeing mostly Class B and C misdemeanor charges for things like obstructing highways, criminal mischief and participating in a riot.

Austin solo practitioner Tycha Kimbrough. Photo: Shelly Borga

Kimbrough said she grew up in a marginalized, low-income community on the East side of San Antonio, and she knows that people cannot afford to hire lawyers.

"I figured I could give back and help people who are wrongly accused and arrested," she said. "I want to use my law degree to do good for my community."

In Dallas, criminal-defense firm Broden & Mickelsen has also pledged pro bono representation for protesters. Founding partner Clint Broden didn't immediately return a call seeking comment. The firm said in a statement that it strongly supports the protesters' rights to demonstrate, and it's a severe threat to American democracy to arrest peaceful protesters.

"Requiring those arrested for exercising their First Amendment rights to then have to pay for a lawyer further compounds the problem and stifles peaceful protests," the firm said. "We stand ready to do our part."

The phenomenon of criminal-defense counsel freely representing protesters is spreading across the nation.

In Miami, Eduardo Maura of Ayala Law established a program to take pro bono cases of victims of police abuse or those charged with crimes in protests, reported the Daily Business Review. The firm's attorneys have partnered with outside lawyers for the effort, and Maura has welcomed more attorneys to get involved.

The Midwest boutique Saeed & Little has taken on cases of 23 people in Chicago, 23 in Indianapolis and nine in Louisville, Kentucky, according to The American Lawyer. Some were charged for shoplifting or throwing tear gas canisters back at police, but others were swept up in mass arrests.

Joe Mastro, a criminal-defense lawyer in Berkeley, California, said that he tweeted out an announcement that he would take protesters' cases pro bono.

"I have not had anyone yet," Mastro said. "It felt like a way to help with a cause I believe in."

New York criminal-defense attorney Dan Lynch, who didn't return a call seeking comment, told Medill Reports Chicago that he wants to keep the protesters out of jail and would not turn anyone down.

"If a protester came up to me and they were arrested for doing something violent, that's still a part of my job," Lynch said.

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