On 12 May 2017 at least 11 activists, including Ildar Dadin, were detained on Moscow's Red Square as they read aloud from the Russian constitution. As RFE/RL reported, citing the website of OVD-Info, the activists were taken to a nearby police station. As of the time of the report, it was unclear whether those detained would face charges. Ildar Dadin, whom RFE/RL notes is the 'only person in Russia to have served prison time for contravening a tough law clamping down on protests in the country,' was reported by TASS as saying: "A police officer approached us and warned us that if we don't leave, they will detain us. Ten minutes later police detained us." The incident highlights not only the repressive nature of Russian law and law enforcement in relation to the right of public assembly, but also the outstanding courage of those, such as Ildar Dadin and his colleagues, who time and again are prepared to contest these restrictions by peaceful means. 

Ildar Dadin was convicted and sentenced to prison in December 2015 under a controversial law that criminalizes repeat violations of Russia's draconian laws on public assembly. He was released on 26 February 2017. While in prison, Ildar Dadin alleged that he had been subjected to torture at the prison colony in Karelia where he was held.