Penn State police filed charges against 31 anti-sweatshop activists today, police director Steve Shelow said.

Shelow said each person will be charged with a subsection of criminal trespass called defiant trespass — a third degree misdemeanor.

The charges, filed in Magisterial District Judge Jonathan Grine's office today, are the result of a sit-in protest by members of United Students Against Sweatshops and Student Labor Action Project in Old Main last Tuesday.

Grine will not view or sign the charges until early next week, a secretary at his office said. The students are not formally charged until Grine signs the criminal complaints, she said.

Protester Stephanie Chapman, who was arrested at the sit-in, said the charge could carry a $2,500 fine or a year in prison.

According to a university press release, the students "may have an opportunity to receive a fine and/or apply for Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition, which is a pre-trial program designed to allow first-time, non-violent offenders to circumvent a trial and clear their records."

The Office of Judicial Affairs will also review the cases and decide if it mertis judicial review, Penn State spokesman Geoff Rushton said.

Shelow said the decision to file charges was made by university police and the Centre County District Attorney's office.

The students were advocating that Penn State President Graham Spanier state support for the Designated Suppliers Program (DSP), a fair labor initiative.

Ben Brewer (senior-Spanish), who was among the students arrested, said he has not heard anything from police besides a phone call Thursday.

He said the student groups will hold a rally at a 4 p.m. May 1 to show support for anti-sweatshop apparel and for the students who may be fined.