The San Francisco District Attorney’s office reduced felony charges against SF State professor Antwi Akom at an arraignment at the Hall of Justice Tuesday and he faces misdemeanor charges at a court date set for Nov. 16.

Akom, an ethnic studies professor, was arrested on campus the night of Oct. 25 and is charged with assaulting an officer and resisting arrest. He entered a plea of not guilty.

Judge Donna Little who presided over the proceedings said that although she questioned Akom’s conduct during the altercation, she did not feel there was enough evidence to warrant the felony charges brought against him by the DA’s office.

According to previous Xpress reports Akom was going to his office after hours to retrieve a book he needed for a class the next day. Versions of the events vary, but problems arose when the security guard on duty who said he was unsure of who Akom was and what he was doing there called the campus police. Akom said that when he returned from his office a campus police officer was waiting for him. It was then that an argument and then an altercation ensued.

Akom was arrested and taken to 850 Bryant and initially held on a $51,000 bail. He was eventually released on Oct. 27 of his own recognizance.

“I think the judge showed that this felony charge was an extreme charge and it’s step one,” said Matthew Shenoda, an ethnic studies professor and Akom’s colleague. “I stand behind his innocence and that this was a case of racial profiling and I hope that will be proven in court.”

President Corrigan issued a statement last Friday expressing regret on the emotional toll that this incident has taken on the campus but he urged students to resist taking action. As of yet, the administration has not taken a firm stance about the judicial aspect of the altercation.

“We have no comment on the court proceedings,” said Ellen Griffin, director of the SF State Public Affairs Office about this development. “The court process is separate from the process at the university.”

More than 30 students and faculty came to show their support at the 9:30 a.m. court hearing. They wore orange armbands on their forearms and when it was Akom’s turn to approach the court they all held their fist in the air to show solidarity. Matt Gonzalez who is working on a future civil case with Akom was also present.

A meeting was held on campus in the Ethnic Studies/ Psychology Building Room 116 from 12-3 p.m. The room was filled to capacity and people listening in the hallway to Akom speak, who thanked everyone for their outpouring of support.

Although most students will not make official comments, one student present at the hearing read from a list of demands that are listed in a petition that is circulating online. They include the charges being dropped, a formal apology from the Department of Public Safety and the termination of the officers involved as well as mandatory diversity training for all SF State officers.

Although Akom and his lawyers were pleased with the charges being reduced, they said that the battle to prove his innocence is just beginning.

“I am shocked, dismayed and traumatized by this entire experience,” Akom said. “But we’re confident that justice will prevail because I haven’t done anything wrong.”