A night that started with a reported shooting and a bag containing loaded rifle magazines and Molotov cocktails as a protest again morphed into a violent early morning confrontation between demonstrators and law enforcement in Oregon’s largest city.
U.S. agents repeatedly fired tear gas, flashbangs, and pepper balls early Monday to clear a mass of rioters outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland. Some demonstrators had climbed over the fence surrounding the courthouse, while others shot fireworks, tried to cut through the fence, and shined laser lights at officer’s eyes.
The federal courthouse has been a place of contention as the city has seen nightly unrest for two straight months since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May. President Donald Trump said he sent federal agents to Portland to halt the unrest but Democratic officials said they are making the situation worse.
As always, the protest late Sunday started peacefully, with organizers giving speeches and leading chants with the crowd. But things became choatic as the night wore on. U.S. agents declared an “unlawful assembly,” and just after 1 a.m., confronted protesters on the street and worked to clear the area. Several people were seen being detained, but it was not immediately clear how many may have been arrested.
Law enforcement spent hours working to disperse the crowd. At times, protesters scattered amid flash bangs. Officers deployed more tear gas and less-lethal munitions, and formed a line to push back demonstrators. Many dispersed, but several protesters remained well after 2 a.m.
It’s become an all-too-familiar scene in Portland.
Authorities declared a riot early Sunday morning. Protesters had breached a fence surrounding the city’s federal courthouse building where U.S. agents have been stationed. Protesters remained in the streets past 2:30 a.m., forming lines across intersections and holding makeshift shields and throwing bricks and explosives, as police patrolled and closed blocks abutting the area.
Sunday evening, Portland police had responded to a shooting at Lownsdale Square Park, near where the overnight protests have been taking place. Two people were taken into custody and later released, police said Monday morning. The person who was shot went to the hospital in a private vehicle and was treated for a non-life threatening wound.
Among the rioters, a bystander was also reportedly stabbed and a man arrested by federal agents.
Also late Sunday, police said someone pointed out a bag in the same park, where officers found loaded rifle magazines and Molotov cocktails.
The shooting and the items in the bag were not related, police said.
You can see footage from the unrest below —
Rioters are using a circle saw to cut apart the fence protecting the federal courthouse. Video by @livesmattershow https://t.co/okZ56jpH5B #PortlandRiots
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) July 25, 2020
Fireworks and other objects being thrown at the Federal Courthouse #Portland pic.twitter.com/XuEAIjiC0i
— Jorge Ventura Media (@VenturaReport) July 25, 2020
This Antifa guy stabbed someone in Portland earlier this morning, prompting a police response and his arrest. pic.twitter.com/b0UBqnXJaX
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) July 25, 2020
https://twitter.com/ShelbyTalcott/status/1286940347835326464
The Associated Press contributed to this article