I just got off of the phone with Officer Frankel of the Berkeley Police Department, who is also an active Air Force Reservist who has spent time in the dirt of both fronts in the War on Terror.  Officer Frankel has assured me that this is being taken very seriously.

The initial call to 911 came in at 8:54PM, made by patrons of a restaurant across the street from the Recruiting Station.  The Berkeley found no one at the scene apon their arrival and conducted a search of the surrounding neighborhoods.  The have taken one person of interest into custody on an unrelated warrant.  It appears that the police are looking for two other men in their 20′s who participated as well.

Semper Fi

Howie

I just got this from my contact in the Berkeley area…

The Marine Corps Officers Recruiting Station, located on Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley, California, was vandalized sometime last night. Plate glass windows were shattered and red paint was poured all over the front of the station. The damage is estimated at $4,000 to $5,000.

(Doug Oakley/Staff)

The Berkeley Police are investigating, but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that it was probably World Can’t Wait or the ANSWER Coalition (or a smaller affiliate) that did this. Besides protesting in front of the recruiting station for months, they have also chained themselves to the front door to deny people access to the building.

Further pictures and video to follow as I get them.

By Kristin Bender, Oakland Tribune
Posted: 03/19/2009 10:39:06 AM PDT

BERKELEY — Windows were smashed and red paint splashed last night on the U.S Marine Corps Recruiting Center, which has been the target of protests for the past 18 months.

The incident, which came on the eve of the 6th anniversary of the Iraq war, was caught on tape by a surveillance camera at the center in downtown Berkeley at about 8:55 p.m., police said.

Police have not made any arrests but are reviewing the tape, said Sgt. Mary Kusmiss.

Police found a sledgehammer and a crowbar in a nearby garbage can that they are reviewing as evidence.

After breaking windows and defacing the Marine Corps logo at the center, the half-dozen vandals wearing dark clothing scattered in three different directions, police said. The suspects’ faces were covered, police said.

In addition to the video, police said about six people witnessed the incident.

Crews are at the center now, replacing the windows. Earlier, they had been boarded up with plywood.

CodePink and other anti-war groups have picketed in front of the Marine recruiting center at 64 Shattuck Square in downtown Berkeley since the fall of 2007. The groups say the Marines do not belong in liberal Berkeley and they should find a new spot for their center. The Marines have a lease through the end of this year and have said they have no plans to leave before then.

Last year, the situation heated up when the Berkeley City Council called the Marines “uninvited and unwelcome intruders,” and made clear its intention to send a letter stating the sentiment.

The statement set off a firestorm with everyone from Republican lawmakers, who threatened to pull money earmarked for the city, to military mothers, who rallied in front of City Hall.

The council later voted 7-2 to pull back on its original intention to send a letter and instead issued a new statement, acknowledging “the recruiters’ right to locate in our city and the right of others to protest or support their presence.”