It was supposed to be a regular shift for Adelmi Ruiz, a San Francisco State University graduate in Broadcast Electronic Communication Arts and multimedia journalist at KRCR-TV.
She was assigned to cover a protest at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt happening the night of April 29, one of many across the state making headlines as students across the country fight to express their stances on Israel and Palestine.
“Going into that overnight shift, I knew it was going to be a hard thing to cover, but I figured at most I’d be recording aggressive arrests or fights breaking out,” the 24-year-old reporter shared. “I thought I would just be documenting something horrible. I never thought it would happen to me.”
Ruiz arrived around 10 p.m. to document the pro-Palestinian student encampment and protest at the university, shooting b-roll, recording sounds of the night and trying to get interviews for her outlet’s coverage. She began a live recording from the scene as the situation between law enforcement and protesters began to escalate.
At around 2:30 a.m., law enforcement began a series of actions to restore order on the campus, clearing and securing some of its buildings and general area and arresting various protestors on the scene.
According to Ruiz’s coverage, the operation was carried out by law enforcement personnel from around the state under the leadership of Humboldt County Sheriff William Honsal and CalPoly Humboldt University Police Department Chief Peter Cress.
Ruiz was detained during the operation, something she says is a complete violation of what journalism represents.
“The police pulled me aside and asked me to go with them,” she said. “ I was complying, but even then they started to get aggressive with me and I kept saying, ‘I’m press, I’m with the media, I’m a news reporter covering the story, I’m just doing my job’ and that’s when the officer zip tying me told me I needed to find a different job if it makes me break the law.”
Ruiz was then transported to Humboldt County, where she was charged with trespassing, unlawful assembly, obstructing an officer and obstructing a business.
Later, County Sheriff Honsal was made aware of the situation and pulled Ruiz aside at around 5 a.m., apologizing for the incident and processing her paperwork so she’d be free to leave and continue her coverage.
She was officially released at 5:25 a.m., and the Sheriff himself drove her back to continue her coverage, according to Ruiz. All charges against her have been dropped.
The Beat sat down to check in with Ruiz, who was a youth reporter in the program from 2016-2018 during her time at Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School in Boyle Heights.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
BHB: What was that experience like and how are you feeling now?
Ruiz: It was a very upsetting experience, and honestly quite traumatizing. The way officers were handling me was completely unnecessary. They were being very aggressive even though I was being very compliant with me. I couldn’t sleep for days. Every time I’d close my eyes, the whole scene just replayed in my head. I’ve been restless, I’ve been anxious.
BHB: With general expectations regarding freedom of the press, did you ever picture yourself ending up in such a situation?
Ruiz: Absolutely not. As a journalist, you go into these sorts of things ready to document, you prepare yourself mentally to be able to, but being on the receiving end of things when you’re just doing your job is not something to be expected.
Some protestors had phone numbers in sharpie on their legs, on their arms because they were prepared knowing they might go to jail. I didn’t have that expectation, so I had nothing ready when things went down. I didn’t have my news director or producer’s number memorized.
When I got to jail and was given a phone to use, I really didn’t have anyone to call outside of my immediate family, and at that point it was 3 a.m. and my family was asleep. When they woke up, they found out ‘Oh my god, my daughter, my sister, my cousin, she was detained, she went to jail,’ and that’s a shocking thing to wake up to.
I wasn’t prepared at all for what actually happened to me, because it never crossed my mind that as a member of the press I would end up behind bars.
BHB: Why is it important for journalists to be on the scene during such events?
Ruiz: We’re taught in journalism school that we’re here to report the truth. For me, the most important people in my field are the viewers, the people, because they deserve to know what’s going on in their local area, in their country from coast to coast.
Being one of the first people at the scene to be detained prevented me from getting a full story out to them. I wasn’t able to get everything in the story that the viewers deserve to know. As a journalist, our job is to report the full truth. Like my old high school teacher Mr. Jimenez used to say, journalists are the first draft of history books in the making.
I always try to make sure my stories are something that people in the future can study and research, every day is going to be a part of history. Journalists, in a way, are a part of history.
BHB: What advice do you have for journalists covering these kinds of events?
Ruiz: These days, you have to be prepared for the worst. If you’re covering a protest and it turns violent, be prepared to witness that violence, because witnessing violence can cause trauma. Be prepared to take in all of that, and keep your composure to the best of your ability.
I’d also say you need to always think about what the viewers, the readers would want to know. They’re the ones going to you, turning to you for information, for the news, for the facts. Think about gathering as much as you’re able to get the full story and get that to the viewers, the readers.
When you’re covering protests, always keep a phone number in mind. Keep your boss’ number, your legal team’s contact, your HR Department, your producer’s, everyone on your team. Have those things memorized, so if the worst happens and you’re detained and behind bars, you’ll be able to call the right people to get you back out and report.
When you’re covering something major, absorb as much as you can. Even when your camera is pointed in one direction, keep your head on a swivel so you know what’s happening behind you, to your side, above you. Be prepared to document as much as you can, so you get the full story to your viewers and readers. They always deserve the full story.
BHB: Even after such a traumatizing event, do you still picture yourself covering similar events that might put you in harm’s way?
Ruiz: Definitely. I’ve wanted to be a news reporter since I was eight years old, and that’s the path I’ve followed from my days at the Beat to my time in college and my reporting after.
Even though my experience was traumatizing, and it will take me time to recover, journalism and reporting is my passion. The audience is the most important thing for me, so I’m always going to strive to get them whatever information I can get them. This experience was rough, but I’m going to do my best to get back out there when I’m ready.
