BLOOMINGTON — The Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office has officially charged an IU student for allegedly vandalizing the Herman B. Well statue with red paint back in October.
Luke Summers, 21, is charged with criminal mischief, a Class A misdemeanor.
Summers was booked into the Monroe County Jail at 3:18 p.m. Friday.
The Palestinian Solidarity Committee shared the following statement with IUSTV News:
“IU’s campaign of repression against students continues. After weeks of harassment, including having their phone and car seized by authorities, one of our organizers has been arrested by the IUPD. They are accused of engaging in an art related protest against the school’s role in genocide. This is only the latest in a series of attacks against our movement and our organizers. The IU Administration has made it clear that they are willing to use a wide variety of methods to discourage students from speaking out. The movement of Palestine at IU refuses to let intimidation deter us from taking necessary action against our institutions role in perpetuating the genocide.”
VANDALISM REPORTED
The investigation began on Oct. 7 on the one-year anniversary mark of the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict. At 8:30 a.m. that morning, IU Facilities employees reported the statue had been vandalized overnight.
According to court documents, the statue had been painted red and a small Palestinian flag was placed in the monument’s hand. The words “FREE GAZA,” was painted on the bricks in front of the statue.
IU Police reported observing photos of the vandalism posted to the Palestine Action Indiana Instagram account, however, the post has since been removed.
IDENTIFYING A SUSPECT
According to court documents, an officer reviewed security camera footage of the hours before the vandalism was reported.
At the 1:38 a.m. timestamp for Oct. 7, court documents state two subjects were seen on Eagleson Avenue near the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center Library.
The two reportedly stop at a bridge which had been painted by students memorializing the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. One of the individuals, who an investigator identified as Summers based on “prior incidents,” takes out a can of spray paint and painted over portions of the memorial.
According to court documents, the two students later walked away, heading west along the campus river. The two were reportedly seen again at the 3:02 a.m. timestamp and painted portions of the bridge again in red.
Investigators documented a dark blue Honda Pilot with a nursing specialty plate and a “GAZA” sticker had crossed the bridge heading south, before turning around somewhere else and crossing the bridge again from the north. The car reportedly then turned into the south parking lot of the admissions office.
Later that same day, around 5:30 p.m., court documents state a group of people were painting the same bridge again. Investigators watched the group through security cameras and an investigator documented Summers was allegedly among the group.
Then, at 7:30 p.m. that same day, court documents state the Palestinian Solidarity Committee held a memorial at the Sample Gates to honor the lives lost in Gaza since the start of the conflict.
After the event, police documented seeing Summers park along Indiana Avenue in the same dark blue Honda Pilot from the security cameras. The car was reportedly registered to Summers’ mother.
The car was seen again on Oct. 8 after a student walkout and rally at the Luddy AI building.
OCTOBER 10 SEARCH WARRANT
According to court documents, IU Police requested and conducted an approved search warrant on Summers, his car, and his phone on Oct. 10.
Police allegedly seized five cans of red spray paint and Summers’ phone.
In a statement posted to the Palestinian Solidarity Committee Instagram that same day, the organization called the search warrant “blatant targeting of students.”
Summers issued a statement on the PSC Instagram on Oct. 14, writing, “There is a clear pattern of harassment and intimidation meant to silence any dissent of the University’s role in weapons manufacturing.”
WHAT POLICE REPORTEDLY FOUND ON SUMMERS’ PHONE
Summers’ phone was taken to the Indiana State Police Bloomington post for a forensic analysis.
Court documents state an investigator search the phone’s camera roll, text messages, and Snapchat messages around the time of the vandalism and used key terms like “paint,” “Wells,” “statue,” “monument,” “action.”
Police reportedly found photos and videos of the bridge around the same time as in the security footage. Court documents state the same photos that were published to the Palestine Indiana Action Instagram were also recovered.
The phones GPS location around the time of the reported vandalism was also documented. According to court documents, the photos of the vandalized statue allegedly pinged near the area of the monument around 1:57 a.m. Oct. 7.
At 3:14 a.m. Oct. 7, phone records reportedly showed Summers sent a message to a person, writing “can you put this on pal action Indiana with the caption ‘F*** YOUR PHOTO OPS --- PEOPLE ARE DYING’ in the morning:)”
According to court documents, screenshots were recovered from 11:43 a.m. that were of the photos posted to various accounts.
• • •
The charges are the latest in a string of tensions on the IU campus surrounding the administrations response to protests against the war in Gaza.
Indiana State Police arrested 55 people on April 25-27, but the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office declined to file any of the charges.
The ACLU has a pending lawsuit against IU over claims the university violated the First Amendment rights of the protesters arrested during the Gaza encampment in Dunn Meadow.
Following the protests, the Indiana University Board of Trustees approved an expressive activity policy that set guidelines for when, where and how the IU community can protest on campus.
Some students have shared their concerns over the policy, and the ACLU of Indiana has a pending lawsuit against IU over the policy.
The policy was revised in November, but still kept much of the same frame work.
On the 100th day of the protest, IU fenced off and cleared what was left of a pro-Palestine encampment in Dunn Meadow.
In an email, Tom Morrison, Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities, said “the heavy use of that space since April and placement of temporary structures unfortunately damaged the area, necessitating extensive repairs now that the structures have been removed.”
The fences remain around Dunn Meadow remain up as of Dec. 6. IU has yet to provide an update on the timeline for when the fences will be removed.
