PORTLAND, Ore. A fire in a police station building prompted authorities in Portland, Oregon, to declare a call and force protesters away from offices as violent demonstrations continue in the city hoping for peace after federal agents retired more than a week ago.
Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. Video taken by a journalist shows smoke and flames emanating from the building.
Several hundred people had gathered outside the offices, located about 5 miles (8 kilometers) north of the federal courthouse, which earlier this summer was the target of night violence. The Portland Police Association is a trade union that represents members of the Portland Police Bureau.
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Portland police officers walk through the Laurelhurst neighborhood after dispersing protesters from the Sheriff’s Office of Multnomah County on Saturday morning, August 8, 2020 in Portland, Ore. (Associated Press)
Live video had shown that several dumpster fires had been set up near the building, less than half an hour after police tweeted that “criminal activities, including, but not limited to, vandalism, lawful unlocking of the building or starting it of fire, “could be subject to arrest, use of tear gas and / or ammunition for crowd control.
Once the riot was declared – just after 11:30 pm – officers formed a line and used flash bangs and smoke canisters to force the public away from the area.
Rallies were also held earlier in the afternoon and evening throughout the city, including on peninsulas, Laurelhurst and Berrydale parks, local media reported.
A Portland police officer shakes off a protest as police try to disperse the crowd in front of the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office this morning, Saturday, August 8, 2020 in Portland, Ore. (Associated Press)
The rallies this week were remarkably smaller than the crowds of thousands who appeared about two weeks in July night to protest the presence of U.S. agents sent by the Trump administration around the federal courthouse in the to protect downtown.
However, this week’s clashes have heightened tensions after an agreement between state and federal officials appeared to offer a brief delay.
POLICE FIRE OF SEVERAL PROTEST IN PORTLAND AFTER ANOTHER NIGHT OF CLASHES
Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters by truck. An improper assembly was declared outside the Penumbra Kelly Public Safety Building.
Most of those arrested were from Portland, while one man was from Oakland, California, and another was from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Most were in their 20s or 30s. The prosecutors included assaulting an officer, interfering with an officer, harassing behavior and resisting arrest.
A Oregon State Police trooper was struck in the head by a large rock and sustained a head injury, police said. The condition of the trooper was not immediately known.
CORRECT DAY TO FRIDAY – Tabitha Poppins sings for the Office of Sheriff’s Office at Multnomah County during a protest against racial inequality and police violence on Friday, August 7, 2020 in Portland, Ore. (Associated Press)
Some protesters filled noses of swimming pools with nails and placed them in the road, causing a lot of damage to a patrol car, police said. Oregon State Police worked with Portland officers to clear the protesters.
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Since George Floyd was assassinated in Minneapolis, protests over racial injustice and police brutality have occurred at night for more than 70 days.
Democratic Mayor Ted Wheeler said violent protesters also serve as political “props” for President Donald Trump in a divisive election season, where the president hammers on a message-and-order message. Trump has called the protesters “sick and dangerous anarchists” who roam the city’s streets.
Tear gas was first used by police on Protestants on Wednesday since U.S. agents withdrew their presence in the city. But officers did not use it Thursday or Friday despite declaring the demonstrations as legal assemblies.
