After protesters refused to leave a UC Berkeley building, officers arrested 17 people who were demonstrating against budget cuts.

Daily Cal reports:

Following a day filled with rallies, marches and snacking that began with a noon demonstration in front of Sproul Hall - with numbers peaking at less than 200 throughout the day - a small group of protesters reconvened on the steps of Wheeler Hall at about 5 p.m. and later moved inside.

The building officially closes and must be cleared out by 10 p.m., according to campus officials. The 17 protesters who sat on the floor, linked arms and refused to leave were zip-tied and detained. UCPD Police Chief Mitch Celaya said that unless those detained have any other criminal actions pending, they will be cited for trespassing and released. Student organizer Marco Amaral was among those detained.

The protesters were asked to leave or go to jail. Police with riot gear moved in for arrests. Five were cited and released, two protesters spent the night in jail.

Update: One of the arrested protesters writes to SFist, saying, "The police use the term 'cited and released' only to mean that those 15 of us do not have to post bail ALL of us were detained, spent the night in jail, and were not released until 9:00 this morning. We all have to appear in court today at 2 pm."

Yikes, good luck, Wheeler Hall 17!