Just as police were moving in to clear the Occupy New Haven camp on the New Haven Green on Tuesday, the attorney for the group said the Second Circuit Court of Appeals was allowing them a temporary stay.
"Stay ordered. Police have begun to act. We have notified city. Stay calm," Norm Pattis said via Twitter.
The eight named plaintiffs can stay on the green until April 17, according to the city of New Haven's Twitter account. However, city officials cannot distinguish tents, so they have suspended the operation to clear the Green.
The appellate court will hear arguments in the case next week.
"When they came, you're like 'Oh no, this is it', but Norm came through at the last minute," said Danielle DiGirolamo, a member of Occupy New Haven. "Luckily they didn't get too much. They stole some of our artwork and put that in the dumpster."
The decision was a reversal of a judge's order on Monday that protesters to leave the Green by noon.
Pattis filed a stay request in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in an attempt to keep the group on the Green and as police were preparing to evacuate the Green, the decision came down.
The protesters, believed to live in one of the last Occupy encampments in New England, have been living on the Green for 177 days and have recently been in a battle with the city to stay on the New Haven Green, which is privately owned but maintained by the city.
"I'm actually very proud that my friends have stood up against the police, and have fought for the First Amendment right and have continued to win, so it's amazing to see," said Ty Hailey, another Occupier.
Local
Pattis argued that city officials could not force the activists to leave the Green because it is private property.
City officials said Occupy New Haven failed to recognize that the Green is a public space for all and the activists are essentially seeking to have the Green declared their own private property.
"The people of New Haven deserve the New Haven Green back," said Mayor John DeStefano. "I think that the six months the Occupy camp has existed on the Green, the city has acted in a cooperative and supportive fashion. I don't think it's appropriate for a few to monopolize one of the central assets of New Haven."
The Occupy group will hold a meeting on the green on Wednesday.
