A troupe of ACLU "legal observers" in orange hats watched last night as dozens of police officers inspected a school bus used to prepare food for G-20 summit protesters and gave two traffic citations to its driver.

The bus, belonging to the Seeds of Peace Collective, had moved to a street off Larimer Avenue about 6:30 p.m., after city officials forced the group from a Lawrenceville location. Driver Randall Mark said he had parked the bus momentarily when officers told him to turn off the engine and began examining it from every angle.

The process drew a crowd of officers and onlookers and took more than two hours to complete; police eventually passed water bottles to Mr. Mark -- who was told he couldn't drive the bus -- and others to keep them hydrated.

The encounter will likely play into a new federal lawsuit filed yesterday that cites examples of city officers abusing their authority.

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The suit also includes a Sunday night incident in which city police, claiming they were there for "national security" reasons, raided a private property on Sassafrass Street in Lawrenceville, where the group's two buses were parked.

Officers did not have search warrants and were not given permission to search the buses.

Alleging that Pittsburgh police are engaging in "systematic attempts to harass and discourage lawful First Amendment activities," the Seeds of Peace Collective and Three Rivers Climate Convergence filed the complaint yesterday against the bureau and a number of individual officers.

It includes allegations of retaliation, illegal search and seizure and free speech violations.

U.S. District Judge Gary L. Lancaster, who heard another protest case last week, scheduled a hearing for today at 10 a.m.

The 16-page lawsuit focuses on three specific incidents involving the Seeds of Peace Collective, a group founded in 1986 to provide food and water to protesters.

A bus, retrofitted to run on vegetable oil and solar power, that is used by the group to prepare meals, arrived in Pittsburgh from Montana on Sept. 13.

On Friday, members of Seeds of Peace returned to where the bus had been parked and locked in a private driveway on Melwood Avenue in Oakland to find one police officer inside the bus and another in its doorway.

The members asked what they were doing and told them they did not have consent to either enter or search the vehicle.

The officers had the bus towed to the city's impound lot, and Michael Bowersox, its co-owner, had to pay $220 to get it back.

"This is the absolute worst police harassment I've experienced in 19 years," he said. "We have a long history of being committed to nonviolence, in the tradition of Gandhi and Martin Luther King."

The complaint also said that another bus operated by Everybody's Kitchen, which was parked in a private driveway in Bloomfield, was subjected to harassment, too.

Yesterday afternoon, city officials told both buses they had until 6:30 p.m. to vacate the Sassafras Street property where they had been parked.

Bob Johnson, an artist who leases the property, said a city building inspector approached the owner yesterday morning, cited him for several code violations and threatened to fine him $1,000 a day unless they moved.

Police officials declined to comment on the yesterday. With regard to the traffic citations in Larimer, Lt. Timothy O'Connor said police were there to enforce the law.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said that he wasn't surprised that lawsuits related to the G-20 summit have already been filed.

"I'm not going to comment on [the ACLU lawsuit], nor will I, throughout this week, get into the back and forth of any organization that may decide to sue our police department or may decide to take us to court," he said. "We'll deal with that when the time is right to deal with that, which will be in court."

Asked about alleged aggressive policing of the Seeds of Peace bus, he said he "wasn't there. The judge will, as he is trained to do, make that decision. "We believe that we have a well-trained police force that is going to use its training and expertise to keep everybody safe while balancing the First Amendment rights of those that are in our city."

The Seeds of Peace bus is equipped with enough supplies to make 5,000 meals, said Mr. Mark, 29, of Missoula, Mont.

Contacts in Pittsburgh helped the food buses get permission to use the Sassafras Street property, which sits under the Bloomfield Bridge and is covered with scrap-metal sculptures.

Mr. Johnson allowed police on the grounds on Sunday night when more than 30 police officers dressed in riot gear showed up at about 11:30 p.m., the lawsuit said.

"They informed the owner that this was a national security investigation and that no warrant was necessary." After about 20 minutes of discussion, Mr. Johnson allowed police to search the property, but they could not go on the buses.

Mr. Ravenstahl yesterday acknowledged that there have been some problems between police officers and protesters.

On Sunday, a group was initially kept from traveling a street they were permitted to use.

"A mistake was made. It was acknowledged. It was recognized. It was then made right, and they were given access to the street they were supposed to be given access to," Mr. Ravenstahl said.

He said the city will stay focused on security.

"We're going to keep this city safe. We're going to protect the people here, and if you intend on visiting our city to peacefully protest, you're more than welcome to be here," Mr. Ravenstahl said.

Mr. Ravenstahl acknowledged that there have not been reports of property damage or injuries and called complaints of police aggressiveness "he-said, she-said, [which] is common in these types of cases, especially when you host big events like this. ??? We can't get sidetracked on that type of dialogue."

City officers have a tough job this week, he said.

"They face a daunting task. They are the front line of defending this city."

They expressed concern about the propane tanks used for cooking, Mr. Mark said.

"They took pictures of everything."

After about two hours, the officers left.

But then, the lawsuit continued, four Seeds of Peace members walking to a house where they were staying were stopped.

"Almost immediately a vehicle's lights were shone on them. Shortly thereafter the vehicle drove directly at them at a high rate of speed, screeching to a stop right in front of them," the lawsuit said.

Approximately 13 city police officers jumped out of the van, the complaint continued. They were laughing. "The officers demanded to know what the four Seeds members were doing on the street, stated that this was an 'official investigation' and demanded that the four produce identification, which they did."

The officers then searched a bag belonging to one of the people without permission. The group was held for nearly an hour before being released with no citations.

Before city officials told the food buses to vacate, they had been planning to deliver food to the Three Rivers Climate Convergence event in Schenley Park.

They were able to prepare dinner last night for up to 200 people before packing up and moving.

"We got food out tonight. That brings my morale up," said Katy Kelly, with Seeds of Peace.