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BART shuts down 4 stations in response to protests

Chose not to disrupt cell phone service as it did during last week’s protests over an agency police officer’s shooting of a homeless man. Blocking cellphone service sparked cyber attacks from an activist group and a legal challenge from the FCC.

August 16, 2011
1 min to read


WASHINGTON, D.C. — During a protest of the transit system on Monday, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) police shut down four stations along Market Street in downtown San Francisco, stranding riders and tying up street traffic, but didn’t disrupt cellphone service as it did last week, which spurred online hacking from an activist group known as Anonymous, The Atlantic Wire reported. BART police said the station closures were a safety measure to prevent dangerously overcrowded platforms.

Additionally, the agency faces a legal challenge from the Federal Communications Commission, which said it would look into BART's controversial blockage of cell phone service to disrupt Aug. 11 protests over a BART police officer's shooting of a homeless man last month. For the full story, click here.

For additional reporting from SFGate, click here.

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