Police: 600 to 700 Take Part in ‘Violent and Destructive’ Protests in Oakland

oakland protest
Twitter/@oaklandpoliceca
Amy Furr

Police said hundreds took part in “violent & destructive protests” Wednesday night in Oakland, California, over the shooting of Jacob Blake.

In a tweet just before 11:00 p.m., the Oakland Police Department (OPD) asked those attending the protest to “respect our community and local businesses by participating in peaceful demonstrations.”

However, the crowd began throwing objects and pointing lasers at officers not long after, the department wrote in a subsequent tweet:

Just after 12 a.m. on Thursday, rioters started breaking windows and setting fires.

“Some within the crowd are chanting ‘BURN IT DOWN’ as they ignite fireworks and set trash cans on fire,” the department wrote in another tweet.

Video footage showed multiple broken windows at a business near Lake Merritt:

Rioters later set fire to the Alameda County Superior Courthouse, according to ABC 7.

The OPD tweeted video of the building as the fire burned inside:

“Video shows graffiti, mostly demanding justice [for] Blake. One painted string of words reads, ‘Attack the rich in the Oakland Hills,'” the ABC 7 article said.

Police officers responding to a domestic incident shot Blake seven times in the back when he walked away from them and tried to get into a vehicle on Sunday in Kenosha, Wisconsin, according to Breitbart News.

However, Blake later admitted to law enforcement he “had a knife in his possession,” according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

The Oakland riot on Wednesday took place after several businesses had just removed plywood from their windows following George Floyd protests in June, KTVU reported.

The article continued:

Earlier this summer, a federal judge granted an injunction against OPD in how they conduct crowd control policy. As part of the ruling, tear gas, flash bang grenades and other less-than lethal projectiles like rubber bullets are effectively banned, with exceptions for cases where police need to prevent injury or substantial property damage.

At 2:40 a.m. on Thursday, the OPD shared photos of the fires, broken windows, and a burned-out car:

“Protesters threw objects at officers, thankfully no officers were injured. Several people arrested,” the department concluded.

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