Of demonstrations and human roadblocks across the bay area. Good evening. Im ama daetz and im diane lim. The chp is even going as far as to call it false the first local ptestegan at 615 on northbound 80 at fifth avenue. En at 755, protesters blocked sthbound lanes on the golden gate brid. A ort time later, at 815, another group of protesters shut down southbound lanes of 880 in oakland. We do have abc seven News Team Coverage tonight with luz pena looking at the impacts of these demonstrations and the consequences. Yes, but we begin with lena howland, who joins us live from oakland. Lena hey, there we are at the bottom of 880 southbound lanes at the on ramp at the seventh street location here in oakland, where things are back to normal. Now, the protesters that were blocking all lanes of the highway here at seventh street and blocking the entrance to this on ramp have since cleared the area, and the highway has since been reopened. Heres a look at what happened on 880 northbound near fifth avenue in oakland earlier today. This all started just after 6 00 this morning when chp says protesters walked onto the highway physically chained themselves to 855 gallon drums each filled with concrete and rebar. It took chp about seven hours to clear this. Seven protesters were arrested here two hours after that demonstration started. Ats when chp says around 300 demonstrators made their way onto 880 on foot, blocking all southbound lanes at seventh street in oakland. Chp says five protesters from this group were arrested. One protester from this location told us, this is about pushing our local and federal officials to call for a permanent ceasefire in gaza. They also want american tax dollars to stop funding support to israel. I am very sorry for the people that are being killed because we decided to support the system. That is absolutely wrong. We cannot provide guns to somebody to kill children. The concrete barrels that were utilized, we have to use jackhammers and saws to cut, to basically break in and cut through those. Thus, the reason it took a while to open up the roadway. Its complex on their part. Its complex on ours. On the southbound side of things, it wasnt until about 1 00 this afternoon, about five hours after it all started, when chp officers were finally able to push protesters down the on ramp here at seventh street peacefully. The protesters then marched from here to a bart station in west oakland. So again, to recap, we now know there have been a total of 12 protesters arrested by chp for the 880 disruptions caused here in the east bay. Live in oakland. Lena howland, abc seven news. What a day it has been, lena. Great job to you and your photographer, edward. Today well, protesters shut down the Golden Gate Bridge just before eight this morning. And traffic, as you can see, there, was backed up for miles into marin. Abc seven news caught up with a woman who was trying to get to San Francisco for a medical procedure that was time sensitive. The protest left her stuck in the north bay. Im feeling pretty frustrated. You know what . I believe in the right to protest. And i believe in the right to express your point of view. But i think causing this type of disturbance to thousands and thousands of people isnt the right way to go about it. The bridge reopened at about 1215 this afternoon. Officers arrested 26 bridge protesters there werent any protests on the bay bridge, but officials were ready. The off ramp from eastbound 80 to on southbound 80 was closed in anticipation of possible protests. The chp also blocked the grand avenue on ramp to westbound 80, increasing the gridlock on nearby surface streets. Now these protests snarled traffic and frustrated many commuters, but what will happen to the protesters and why did it take so long for police to clear the scene . Abc seven News Reporter luz pena spoke to legal experts who explain what the consequences could be and the response from Law Enforcement. She joins us live from the newsroom. Luz. Thats right. Diane. Propalestinian protesters shot down the Golden Gate Bridge on interstate 880 in oakland for hours as part of a worldwide economic blockade calling for a ceasefire in gaza. A similar disruption happened last year during apec. Today, 38 were arrested for hours. The Golden Gate Bridge and interstate 880 were blocked by propalestinian protesters on the bridge, chp reported. Protesters used their vehicles to chain themselves. It was pretty clear on the 880 corridor you saw those those black barrels that had been filled with cement. And were also dealing with individual individuals on the Golden Gate Bridge who are utilizing vehicles as devices for slowing us down. This frustrated driver was caught confronting protesters. You think i care if we allow those individuals to engage in such disruption without any form of accountability, then we can absolutely expect more of the same in the future. San Jose State University professor greg woods categorized todays actions as illegal without the benefit of a license to engage in protest at these particular locations. These individuals are engaging in trespass. Todays demonstrations are a flashback to nearly five months ago, when 80 protesters were arrested on the bay bridge calling for a ceasefire in the middle east while President Biden was in San Francisco for the apec summit. The question is, is what is it that we demand from local Law Enforcement and also those districts attorney that are ultimately going to have the responsibility to respond to this type of Mass Movement after the 2023 bay bridge demonstration, San FranciscoDistrict AttorneyBrooke Jenkins charged 80 protesters with five misdemeanors. It remains to be seen whether Brooke Jenkins will use the same tactic in which she charged uh. This large group of people while it was overcharged, and it was very unusual that they were all charged together. Recently, District Attorney jenkins agreed to dismiss the criminal case against those 80 protesters. In exchange, the group would need to complete five hours of community service. Their Attorney Says theyre following the agreement. We also asked just to confirm, youre saying that the people who you represent the last time are not the same ones who are on the bridge today . No, not the same ones who are on the bridge part of the global community. During last years protest, ucsf transplant organs were delayed by the bay bridge protest. Today, sf fire said they didnt get any 911 emergency calls, but they were ready. The Fire Department can coordinate with Law Enforcement and possibly get an escort or closed lanes on the Opposing Side of the roadway to reach you, extricate you, safely, move you out of harms way. Now, its still too early to know what these protesters could be charged with last year in San Francisco, some of the charges were false imprisonment, refusing to disperse, and refusing to comply with a peace officer in the newsroom. Luz pena, abc seven news. Luis, thank you for that update and todays protests werent held just here in the bay area. This was the scene in chicago where protesters blocked traffic heading into Ohare International airport. You can see some people just got out of their cars and started rolling their luggage to the airport so they could catch their flights. 40 people were arrested in new york. Propalestine protesters gathered in front of the New York Stock Exchange before going to the brooklyn bridge. Police arrested several people there. In philadelphia, they blocked an intersection of center city near the irs building, and it was a similar scene in middletown, connecticut, where ten protesters were arrested after chaining themselves together to block the entrance to a manufacturing company. And in eugene, oregon, protesters blocked the southbound lanes of i5 before about 50 people were arrested for much more in todays protests. Stay with abc seven news. You can also go to abc seven news. Com to see more images from todays demonstrations. Moving on to new developments from the federal womens prison in dublin today, it was announced that the prison will be shut down. All of this comes after years of concerns over sexual abuse and retaliation against inmates. Heres abc seven News Reporter ryan curry. Busses in front of the federal Corrections Center in dublin. As this location is now slated to close, the federal bureau of prisons says they put resources into improving the center, but have not seen much of an impact. Director Colette Peters said in a statement we have determined that fci dublin is not meeting expected standards, and that the best course of action is to close the facility. Its a place at the center of a years long sexual abuse investigation in at least eight employees, including a former warden and chaplain, have been charged with sexually abusing inmates. Five have pleaded guilty and two were convicted at trial. We said over there that hes very nasty with all the girls. He liked to see us naked in the showers. This woman served 25 months at the dublin center. She asked us not to show her face or reveal her name, but she says what happened inside those walls was horrifying. The officers there that insulted us, they they basically see us in the showers, they open the curtains. Representative Mark Desaulnier says Congress Needs to step in and ask the committees of jurisdiction, which would be the House Judiciary Committee and then oversight to go ahead and start investigation of the whole system. The bureau of prisons would not say why they are transferring the inmates due to safety and security reasons. However, they are most likely transferring them to places far away from here. The closest federal womens prison is nearly 400 miles away, down in victorville. Another former inmate says the transferring process can be brutal. They put those women in shackles on their wrists, on their ankles, put them in busses for days and days to try to transfer them across the country, sometimes months. Emily shapiro with the California Coalition for women prisoners says the closure is concerning. A federal judge recently decided a special master will oversee operations in dublin. Now, the center is closing. Shapiro says the inmates will go to locations that wont have a special master. This kind of abrupt closure really feels like a total evasion of accountability to survivors, incarcerated people and advocates, congressman desaulnier says there needs to be changes to the bureau of prisons if necessary. Weve got to close more of these facilities and appropriately see if theres another way to run a system thats fair, holds people accountable, but also protects their Constitutional Rights in dublin. Ryan curry abc seven news. A former san jose youth pastor was arrested and booked for Sexual Assault of a minor. Police say the abuse occurred while 47 year old Brett Bymaster was a youth pastor at the river church community. Detectives say bymaster allegedly assaulted a minor multiple times between the years of 2014 and 2018. I know this is a very sensitive topic, especially with someone that is a trusted person, right . A person of trust in the community that it is okay for survivors to come forward. It is okay to come forward and share your story, because that is how we bring justice to you and your family and put the suspect behind bars. Police say the suspect also volunteered at after School Programs outside of the church. Coming up, growing concerns about Health Care Disparities in the south bay months after a Medical Center closed. The action that county officials may take when in connection with a deadly crash on interstate 580. That crash happened last month in oakland. Police say 35 year old patrick sheckles and another man were involved in a burglary at a tobacco store in el cerrito that was captured on surveillance video. Investigators say sheckles was driving the stolen truck the wrong way on the freeway after that break in, when he struck another vehicle head on. The driver of that vehicle was killed, and the driver of a third vehicle involved in the crash suffered serious injuries. In the south bay, there is growing concern that a recently closed Medical Center is worsening Health Care Disparities on the east side of san jose. Now, several city and county officials are making the case to reopen regional Medical Center just months after it closed in august, abc seven News ReporterDustin Dorsey explains ins in medical emergencies, every second counts. San Jose City Council members peter ortiz and domingo candelas know it personally. Ortizs mothers and candelas grandfathers lives were saved at regional Medical Center. If Critical Services close here in august, the Council Members worry about others in similar emergency. Need without access to regional Medical Center, people like my mom would never have had a second chance. This closure signifies more than just the end of services. It represents a loss of hope and support for those who need it most. In february, regional Medical Center announced the imminent closure of its level two trauma center, stemi services and other cardiac services. The center said they were just not being utilized enough to outweigh the cost of keeping them open. But Santa Clara County supervisor cindy chavez disagrees. We are here because this is an emergency. We rely on these services to protect lives and wellbeing of our Community Every day, and were demanding that Health Care Corporation of america and regional Medical Center maintain these Critical Services, and the board of supervisors aimed to take action. The Emergency Medical Services agency studied the impact that closing these services will have on the community. Chavez and her colleagues will hear this report, and from residents of East San Jose during a meeting tuesday. We want those Community Comments because we think its very important to make the case to the state that they should step in. It wouldnt be the first time the board of supervisors stepped in during matters of public health. When San Jose Hospital closed down, the county bought saint louise and oconnor to help with the increase in demand. Whenever one of these institutions makes a change, it has huge impacts on the life and wellbeing of the community and forces the Public Sector for us to use public dollars because they dont think theyre making enough money to provide the services that we think they should be providing. If the board votes to fight the closure tuesday, theyll take the concerns from ems and the community to the department of Health Services in san jose. Dustin dawsey, abc seven news. Coming up, the world is watching as israel decides how to respond to this weekends unrest aerial assault by iran. Well have the latest and whether the conflict is behind rising gas prices a super thin, flexible patch with maximum otc strength lidocaine that contours to the body to relieve pain right where it hurts. And did we mention, it really, really sticks . Salonpas, its good medicine. It will respond to the aerial attack that took place over the weekend. Today, President Biden spoke for the First Time Since israel and an International Coalition stopped just about all of irans barrage of missiles and armed drones. He called it a win for israel and says it showed the countrys capacity to defend itself. We mounted an unprecedented military effort to defend israel. Together with our partners, we defeated that attack. United states is committed to israels security. The attack was a response for an israeli airstrike in syria earlier this month that killed two iranian generals. Iran has already said if israel strikes back, iran will then respond with even greater force. President biden wouldnt say if the u. S. Will take part in any israeli counterattacks. Well, triple a says its not the conflict in the middle east, but refinery maintenance issues that have caused gas prices to spike in recent days. Currently, the average gas price nationwide is about 3. 64 a gallon here in california, its 546, and it is even higher here in the bay area. The average price in San Francisco and oakland are both 0. 15 higher than just a week ago. All right, time now to get a check on our weather.