5 arrested during protest outside Senator’s office in Colorado Springs

Five people were arrested Tuesday during protests outside Senator Cory Gardner’s office in Colorado Springs.

The demonstrators were protesting the repeal and replacement of Affordable Care Act.

According to the Colorado Springs Police Department, the protesters refused to leave Gardner’s office on N. Tejon when office closed for the night.

Five protesters were arrested for trespassing. They were served and released outside the office, police said. Senator Gardner’s office released the following statement in response to the incident: “Our top priority is always to allow these individuals to exercise their First Amendment rights in a safe environment. Senator Gardner was in Washington, DC voting, but three of Senator Gardner’s staff, including his state director met with them in our office today and informed them they would relay all of their concerns and comments to the senator. Our staff also kept in frequent contact with them to ensure the office was not too hot and that they had food or water should they need it. Prior to the office closing, our staff informed these individuals that once the office closed they would need to leave. Once the office closed they declined to leave so we were required to ask the police to peacefully remove them.”