Protests in Washington, DC
Metropolitan Police Department Jurisdiction
The vast majority of the landmass of Washington, DC is policed and permitted by the Washington, DC Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). In general, permits are NOT required for protests involving fewer than 50 people, spontaneous protests, or protests that are restricted to sidewalks and don’t inhibit the flow of pedestrian traffic. There are no limits on the size or materials of signs, structures or other props, as long as the props are not so large as to block traffic.
If your protest involves a march from one location to another and otherwise would not require a permit (because it is spontaneous in nature or you expect to have fewer than 50 people), a permit is generally not required to march in the streets, however police may try to limit your group to a couple lanes to allow traffic to move around you.
Further, the DC code requires that MPD officers responding to a first amendment assembly that is not permitted respond in the same way as they would if the event had been permitted and specifically states that, “an order to disperse or arrest assembly participants shall not be based solely on the fact that a plan has not been approved for the assembly.” D.C. Code § 5-331.07
This framework creates a very permissive space for organizing protests in MPD jurisdiction with – or without – a permit. On the other hand this permissive framework limits opportunities for organizing planned civil disobedience activities. While most jurisdictions in Washington, DC and around the country would likely arrest protestors for engaging in a sit-in blocking a main street, MPD officers are much more likely to respond by routing traffic around the protest (if possible).
Click here to download the Application for Approval of Assembly Plan (the permit application) .