DNC protesters stop blocking intersection

A protester wearing a white boat captain's hat who tried to cross the barricade was put in handcuffs by officers. Earlier in the march, the protester had identified himself to a reporter as John Penley and said he was a U.S. Navy veteran.

An Asheville resident, the 60-year-old Penley, said he is homeless, sometimes sleeping in the basement of his elderly parents. He receives treatment from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for a number of ailments and wanted to talk with Democratic Party policy makers about the bureaucratic maze those like him face.

A second protester was put in handcuffs after the group left the intersection. It wasn't immediately clear why police stopped the man, who was wearing a mask and combat boots.

Also arrested Tuesday were 10 people who identified themselves as illegal immigrants who were protesting in favor of comprehensive immigration reform.

The protesters traveled to Charlotte in a colorful passenger bus emblazoned with butterflies and the slogan, "No Papers No Fear."

Among those arrested was Rosi Carrasco, a Chicago woman whom the group identified as an illegal immigrant first brought to the United States as a child. A married mother, she said she wanted to set an example for her two daughters by protesting the mass deportation of illegal immigrants.

"It was my children that taught me that making change requires taking risks and the status quo of mass deportation constitutes a human rights crisis we can no longer tolerate," she said in a written statement issued by the group. The statement claimed that President Barack Obama "has deported more people than anyone else in U.S. history."

"We want him to be on the right side of history."

Police did not confirm the protesters' immigration status or say whether they would report them to federal authorities. It is the policy of the county sheriff's office to report all detained illegal immigrants.

Two other people had been arrested during a protest march Sunday.

New York delegate James Gaughran, 55, said he'd been waiting for a bus but found out that it wasn't running so he walked over to see what was happening.

Gaughran said he was surprised at some of the venom directed by the mostly left-leaning protesters at President Obama. But he said he was encouraged to see people expressing their right to free speech.

"I guess they're going to have to find another way to get the buses in," he sighed. "But I wonder if they can even imagine what things would be like if Romney is elected."

Associated Press writers Mitch Weiss and Jeffrey Collins in Charlotte contributed to this report.