9 arrested off campus during UC Berkeley conservative speech

BERKELEY, Calif. – Hundreds of police officers and a campus on virtual lockdown accomplished the University of California, Berkeley administration’s goal of allowing a conservative to speak at the famously liberal university without violence.

City police said Friday that officers arrested nine people mainly for having banned items but that there were no injuries or property damage.

University Police Chief Margo Bennett says the crowd in the street was loud but not violent.

Protesters also voiced their displeasure over the Thursday night speech by former Breitbart editor Ben Shapiro.

The event was being seen as a test run for later in the month, when right-wing provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos plans to host a “Free Speech Week.”

UC officials estimated the cost of all the security at as much as $600,000.