COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Columbus police report an activist in a small group protesting construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline blocked traffic by handcuffing himself under a vehicle at a downtown intersection.
WCMH-TV reports other protesters chanted slogans like "water is life" as police and firefighters worked to remove the man from the minivan Monday. They used a saw to free him. Officers said the protester, 34-year-old Peter Gibbons-Ballew of Millfield, Ohio, was facing various misdemeanor charges including inducing panic, disorderly conduct, and failure to comply.
The Columbus Dispatch reports a group called Appalachia Resist said in a news release that the demonstration was part of a nationwide protest of the pipeline. The $3.8 billion pipeline is to carry crude oil from North Dakota to terminals in Illinois.
Native Americans and environmentalists say it will threaten water supplies and harm sacred tribal land.
