Officials prepare for arrest of 2,500

Suffolk County officials are gearing up for the arrest of as many as 2,500 protesters during the Democratic National Convention, scheduling dozens of prosecutors and defense lawyers to handle cases, designating four judges for arraignments, and emptying scores of jail cells.

Boston is planning to issue about 100 permits for demonstrations and marches, more than first expected, because the city extended the deadline for applications from last week to two days ago.

Officials want to make sure the court system can handle a flood of arrests. "We're just all trying to prepare for the worst-case scenario," said Marilyn J. Wellington, administrator of the Boston Municipal Court, which expects to handle most of the cases. "We'd rather be overly prepared than surprised."

Estimates of possible arrests vary among law-enforcement officials, but all appear to be much higher than the number of people arrested at previous national party conventions. Boston Municipal Court Chief Justice Charles R. Johnson recently estimated that 1,500 to 2,500 people could be arrested during the convention. He based that partly on projections by police, Wellington said.

US Secret Service officials have projected up to 1,000 arrests during the convention, according to Elizabeth Keeley, the chief of staff for Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea J. Cabral, who operates the county House of Correction in South Bay.

Either figure would dwarf the totals four years ago at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles, when just under 200 people were taken into custody, and at the Republican Convention in Philadelphia, when some 390 were arrested.

Beverly Ford, a police spokeswoman, said Thursday that she did not know where Johnson's figures came from and that they seemed high. The Police Department is "not giving out any numbers, because you can't predict for that," she said.

The extensive arrest preparations have alarmed some defense lawyers.

"I just know from my experience that when there are large demonstrations and you have police officers on horseback in riot gear ready for action . . . they don't want to get all prepared and do nothing," said John Salsberg, cochairman of Suffolk Lawyers for Justice.

Boston police say those concerns are unwarranted.

"If everybody behaves themselves and follows the law, there will be no arrests," Ford said. "We're prepared, but we don't anticipate any large-scale arrests."

Suffolk County officials have taken steps to streamline the arrest process. Instead of being booked at a district police station, those arrested will be taken to the House of Correction in South Bay, about 3 miles from the FleetCenter, for booking at five special stations.

To accommodate defendants who have to be held overnight, about 140 prisoners, federal detainees being held on immigration violations, are being moved from the House of Correction's Building 8 to holding cells outside the city, Keeley said.

Fifteen veteran prosecutors will be assigned to the district court throughout the week to handle arraignments, and Suffolk Lawyers for Justice has assembled a team to defend those who cannot afford private lawyers.

Citing the possibility that police will overreact to protests, the Massachusetts chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, a left-leaning bar association, plans to have at least 130 observers poised to attend demonstrations to serve as witnesses if people are arrested.

By yesterday, the city's Consumer Affairs and Licensing Department had issued 94 permits to groups ranging from the Falun Dafa Association of New England, which engages in the Chinese meditation practice commonly known as Falun Gong, to Vietnam Veterans Against Kerry, according to Lisa Pollack, a spokeswoman for Mayor Thomas M. Menino.

Stephen Kurkjian of the Globe staff contributed to this report.