Judge blocks Berkeley tree-cutting

BERKELEY, Calif., June 19 (UPI) -- The tree-sitters are still in the oaks on the University of California-Berkeley campus after a judge said the school can't cut down the grove just yet.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Barbara Miller ruled late Wednesday to continue a temporary injunction that is preventing the university's administration from cutting down 44 oak trees near Memorial Stadium to make room for a $125 million athletic facility, KCBS-TV reported.

Miller said in her ruling that the university has failed to follow laws and procedures regarding development of the land.

Protesters trying to save the oaks have been perched in the trees for a year and a half. This week, police removed some of the ropes, lines and a platform the tree-sitters had placed in the trees.

The city of Berkeley, a non-profit group and stadium neighbors are suing the university to stop the construction project, claiming the site is unsafe because of the nearby Hayward earthquake fault.