"The 17 University of Virginia students arrested Saturday after a four-day sit-in at Madison Hall were released Monday from the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail.

They exited the jail in three separate groups, a few hours after a 10 a.m. teleconference bond hearing, during which a judge released the students on $500 personal recognizance bonds. The judge ordered the students to stay away from Madison Hall property until the case is resolved.

Police had cuffed the students and forced them from Madison Hall, the university’s main administration building, on charges of trespassing. One student faces an additional charge of resisting arrest and another faces an additional charge of vandalism - which police say stemmed from damage to a sofa during the arrests.

The students were protesting what they call sub-par wages for the university’s lowest-paid workers. The UVa Living Wage Campaign has been rallying for months for an increase in the base pay rate to $10.72 an hour.

University officials said the students were arrested because their presence was disruptive and inconvenienced many. The students were asked to leave, but refused.

The students could have signed summonses that would have let them leave the jail Saturday night, but opted not to.

When the students were freed Monday afternoon, a crowd of parents, students and professors greeted them.

“Thank you for being here,” said Nina Robbins, a third-year student who was in the first group to exit the jail. “A few days in jail is nothing compared to a life of impoverishment.”

The 17 students focused their comments on the cause, not on their arrests.

“We want to make sure the cause is still the issue,” Robbins said.

All 17 students appeared together for the bond hearing and were represented by Charlottesville lawyer Steven D. Rosenfield.

“They are a selfless, caring and dedicated group of university citizens who care more about workers than they do themselves,” Rosenfield said.

President John T. Casteen III ordered the arrests shortly after he and other top administrators met with the students and ended fruitless negotiations.

The students and Casteen had been exchanging proposals throughout Saturday. Casteen proposed to join with the students to further evaluate the living wage and offered to connect the students with legislators in the General Assembly. The students asked for more time and refused to back down.

“From what I understand, the university was disingenuous in their approach at resolving this dispute and impasse, but that’s par for the course,” Rosenfield said. It’s hard to predict what the university wants to accomplish, he added.

UVa spokeswoman Carol Wood rejected the claims.

“It was never our intention to arrest these students, and President Casteen made the decision reluctantly,” Wood said. “The door is still open to an ongoing discussion in the hope of becoming joint advocates rather than adversaries.”

The arrests are a bump in the road to a “living wage” of $10.72, but will not deter the students, said Teresa Daniels, a second-year student who was arrested.

“This is far from the end,” she said.

Daniels’ mother, Susan, said the students’ arrests and protests have raised awareness and that she’s proud of her daughter for supporting UVa workers.

“I’m proud that she made that decision,” Susan Daniels said, “and the university should be ashamed of itself for how they treated the students.”

The students’ next appearance in court is set for May 5.

The students say they will continue to demonstrate daily at the university. Since Wednesday, students supporting the protesters have rallied outside Madison Hall, where they pitched multiple tents.

On Monday, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Leonard W. Sandridge issued a memo ordering students to remove their tents and belongings from the Madison Hall lawn by 10 a.m. today. The order is primarily because of sanitation issues, Wood said, noting that there are other places, through university policy, that are designated for protests.

“We are seeking to respect and accommodate your peaceful, non-disruptive protest,” Sandridge wrote, “which does not violate the rights of others, or the policies of the University of Virginia and laws of this commonwealth. Thank you for your cooperation.”" (Melanie Mayhew, The Daily Progress, April 18, 2006)

Contact Melanie Mayhew at (434) 978-7265 or mmayhew@ dailyprogress.com.