Reporters and protesters on the scene saw an estimated 40 people detained at Margaret T. Hance Park just north of downtown Phoenix. In a Sunday morning news release, Phoenix police said 46 arrests had been made for criminal trespass, a misdemeanor.
Sgt. Trent Crump said, "most of those arrested were passive in nature and no injuries were reported to either officers or demonstrators."
© ABC15Occupy Phoenix arrests
About 1,000 people attended the Occupy Phoenix event that began with a noon rally at Cesar Chavez Plaza.
By 5 p.m., many protesters had marched to Margaret T. Hance Park and their numbers continued to dwindle throughout the evening.
After police repeatedly ordered protesters to leave, a line of about 100 helmeted officers, many carrying batons, formed around 11 p.m.
The arrests began around midnight after a core group of demonstrators sat on the ground, refusing to move. Police slowly escorted them away one-by-one to paddy wagons.
The arrests appeared peaceful and there were no signs of violence between the officers and a crowd of less than 100 people milling about the park, which officially closed at 10:30 p.m.
Later, those remaining on parks grounds withdrew as the line of officers slowly walked toward them.
The urban newspaper Downtown Devil reported that police left the park about 1:30 a.m.
Earlier, several hundred people turned out for an Occupy Tucson rally that began at noon at Military Plaza Park.
There were no immediate reports of any arrests or damage in either city.
Police there did not return calls late Saturday for comment.
Groups have been turning out across the country to express anger over costly health care and rising unemployment, and to cast blame on corporate interests for the economic pain they say all but the wealthiest Americans have endured since the financial meltdown.
The Occupy Wall Street protests started Sept. 17 in front of the New York Stock Exchange.
Saturday's rally in Phoenix followed a march Friday through the downtown area. Several hundred people chanted anti-bank slogans and waved placards attacking Wall Street, the Federal Reserve, big business and the wealthy -- all under the watchful eye of police.
Rally participants vented a litany of frustrations focused on jobs, foreclosures, the rich-poor divide and corporate political influence.
Brenda Horwoth, 65, of Tempe, said she was laid off more than a year ago and hoped the movement would put pressure on banks to halt foreclosures, compel wealthy Americans to pay more taxes, and persuade businesses to boost hiring.
She was joined by her daughter, Rhonda Buhr, a 44-year-old casino blackjack dealer from Maricopa, who voiced support for livable-wage policies.
"I'm tired of CEOs making millions or billions while everyday workers are earning the minimum wage," Buhr told The Arizona Republic.
In Tucson, police said they had open lines of communication with the protest organizers and informed them that city ordinances required them to have permits and reservations, and overnight camping wasn't allowed without a permit.
Craig Barber, one of the spokesmen for Occupy Tucson, said the group was committed to a peaceful protest. He said if anyone got out of hand at the protests, they would ask them to leave.
"We're trying to do everything and anything we can to alleviate the concerns of the city and the police department," Barber told KOLD-TV.
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