What to Do If You Are Detained at a Protest
Detention means your phone is gone and nobody knows. A pre-set check-in alerts your legal contact and family with your details when you go silent.
On this page
TL;DR
If you're detained at a protest, you likely lose access to your phone, your contacts, and your ability to communicate. An automatic check-in alert fires when you can't confirm you're safe. Your designated contacts are alerted and open your pre-written message (legal name, location, lawyer info, instructions) with their PIN, without any action from you.
Who is this for?
Anyone attending a lawful, peaceful protest, demonstration, or march who wants a communication failsafe in case they are detained and cannot reach their phone. Also useful for legal observers, medics, and journalists covering protest events.
Why Does Detention Create a Communication Emergency?
Detention at protests is not rare. In the ten days after May 25, 2020, more than 10,000 people were arrested at protests across the United States by the Associated Press count. A Washington Post review of 2,652 of those arrests, in 15 cities, found most people were charged with nonviolent misdemeanors. Mass-arrest events overwhelm legal infrastructure, and a detained person can go many hours without communication or legal access.
The core problem is the communication blackout that follows detention. Your phone is confiscated, you can’t remember numbers, and your family doesn’t know where you are. A pre-configured check-in alert reverses this. When you don’t confirm, your contacts are alerted and use their PIN to open everything they need to act.
10,000+
arrests at U.S. protests in the first ten days after May 25, 2020 (AP tally)
2,652
arrests reviewed in 15 cities by the Washington Post; 2,059 of them were nonviolent misdemeanors
91%
of U.S. adults own a smartphone (Pew Research, 2025): for most people, phone numbers live only in the phone
One tap before leaving tells your contacts everything is fine. Silence is what sends the alert.
What Makes Protest Detention a Communication Crisis?
Detention eliminates three things at once: your device, your contacts, and your ability to reach anyone.
Communication Protocols for Protest Attendance
Set these up before the event. If nothing goes wrong, you confirm and the alert never fires.
01
Pre-protest check-in activation
Before attending, activate a timed check-in for when the event is expected to end. If you can't confirm, the alert goes out.
Setup · Schedule for your expected departure time. Add a generous grace period, because protests often run longer than planned.
02
Pre-written emergency message
Write your alert message in advance: full legal name, event location, lawyer's phone number, and instructions for contacts.
Setup · The alert fires automatically when you miss your check-in. Contacts are alerted and open the message with their PIN.
03
Designated legal contacts
Add contacts who can act: a lawyer, legal observer, bail fund, or trusted person who knows your wishes.
Setup · Every plan sends the alert by email. On Survival ($9.99/mo), it also goes out by SMS, for the contact who does not read email at 3 AM. The free plan holds one contact, Safety 101 10.
04
Redundant contact chain
Add at least two contacts in case one is unreachable. Include someone NOT at the protest who can coordinate from outside.
Setup · One local person who can physically respond, one remote contact who can make calls and manage logistics.
What Your Contacts Receive
What your emergency contacts see when the alert fires in a detention scenario.
Alert email · sent automatically at 6:30 PM, March 15, 2026
Amara Okonkwo has not confirmed their scheduled check-in.
Protocol: [protocol name]
Missed at: 5:00 PM
Button: Access Emergency Information
Emergency page · opened with their PIN
Pre-written instructions from Amara:
Full legal name: Amara Okonkwo
Event & location: Community gathering. City Hall Plaza, 200 Main St
"I did not check in from the march. I may have been detained:"
1. Call my lawyer: Maria Chen, (555) 234-5678
2. Contact NLG legal hotline: (555) 876-5432
3. Do NOT post about my detention on social media
4. If no response within 2 hours, call the local ACLU chapter
On the Survival plan ($9.99/mo), this alert is also delivered via SMS, so contacts see it even if they aren’t checking email. Either way, the alert carries a link, not the message.
How to Set Up a Protest Safety Check-in
Four steps, a few minutes. Set it up the night before. Each event gets its own one-off protocol (one a month on the free plan, 10 on Safety 101, 25 on Survival).
Create a protest check-in protocol
Name it clearly (e.g. "March 15 downtown protest"). Include the event name, location, your full legal name, and what contacts should do if you don't check in.
Set your confirmation window
Estimate when you'll leave and add a 60–90 minute grace period. Protests are unpredictable. A longer buffer prevents false alarms, and the alert still reaches contacts quickly.
Write your detained-scenario message
"My name is [legal name]. I attended [event] at [location]. I have not checked in. Please call [lawyer] at [number] and contact [legal observer org]. Do not post on social media without my permission."
Add and brief your contacts
Choose people who will act calmly. Brief them in advance: explain what a check-in protocol is, what the alert looks like, and exactly what you want them to do.