2 arrested as Seattle protests turn violent
Posted July 19, 2020 9:15 pm.
Last Updated July 19, 2020 9:57 pm.
SEATTLE — Authorities say two people were arrested and some police officers were injured Sunday afternoon when a large protest in Seattle turned violent.
Police said demonstrators threw rocks and bottles and at least one officer was transported to a hospital. People also broke out windows of the East Precinct police station in the city’s Capitol Hill neighborhood and ignited a small fire, authorities said.
Updated information regarding the property damage, injuries that occurred during today's protest. https://t.co/OiYhzGwPkN
— Seattle Police Department (@SeattlePD) July 20, 2020
The Seattle Times reports the East Precinct was the site of several nights of often violent confrontations between police and protesters last month, resulting in the department abandoning the precinct building, which became the epicenter for the “Capitol Hill Organized Protest,” or CHOP.
Demonstrators went from Westlake Park to the Municipal Courthouse and then headed back north to the West Precinct…leaving behind a trail of property destruction. These are criminal acts, not peaceful protests. pic.twitter.com/7GYkDxAg9s
— Seattle Police Department (@SeattlePD) July 20, 2020
Protesters had marched from Capitol Hill to downtown. Several downtown storefronts were smashed and the Seattle Municipal Court Building was also vandalized.
Protesters marched and shouted “No Justice! No Peace” and called for defunding of the Seattle Police Department.
Protests have taken place almost every night in Seattle since the May 25 killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer
