ASHEVILLE - Demonstrators who said they were protesting peacefully against the death of George Floyd are questioning why police used tear gas and pepper balls against them.
The demonstrations drew hundreds to downtown May 31 and are expected to continue tonight, though police have said there might be a curfew, something which has been used by other cities across the nation facing unrest after the Floyd's May 25 death in police custody. The Asheville Police Department has reached out to other agencies for assistance.
Maria Norris said police escorted her and other protesters and were friendly until they walked onto the bridge that carries Patton Avenue and Interstate 240, causing traffic to stop.
"We got to the Jeff Bowen Bridge this evening, and we were met with tear gas and force from the Asheville Police Department," she said Sunday.
Norris said the treatment changed after they got away from the "tourism and the money" in the center of town. She and others said they were not told to disperse before the gas was used and that some children were present.
Speaking to the Citizen Times the morning of June 1 and at a press conference that afternoon, APD Chief David Zack said the tear gas was used after protesters got onto interstate for a second time and officers feared they would endanger themselves and drivers.
"We simply could not let that happen," Zack said.
Chief: Protesters threw flares at cars, hit by vehicle
After protesters first gathered near the center of town they began marching west through downtown at about 6:50 p.m. Zack said.
Some walked from Haywood Street down the on-ramp onto I-240 refusing to comply with bicycle police and other officers who tried to stop them, he said. Officers then tried to stop traffic, the chief said, while some demonstrators threw flares and fireworks at cars. Three of them and a bike officer were hit by a vehicle. All refused treatment, though the bicycle was destroyed. A few demonstrators jumped the median into I-240 westbound lanes and began vandalizing the barrier between lanes, Zack said. Others walked up the Charlotte Street exit ramp.
Four people have been arrested, though it's not clear if they were the protesters who walked onto the interstate.
Bowen bridge and gas
Protesters gathered again back near the center of downtown and then at 8 p.m. started walking west on Patton Avenue toward the I-240 ramp and Bowen Bridge, the chief said.
A Citizen Times photographer was with the protesters who said there were some officers who had set up at Patton and Clingman avenues, apparently trying to stop protesters. At that point, a few protesters said they heard police intended to use tear gas and some turned back, including some with children. Once they walked nearly a mile on the roadway across the French Broad River, they were met with a row of officers with shields, helmets and other riot gear.
Police had decided that they needed to keep demonstrators from walking onto the busier mix of roads with interstates and local roads weaving together. Some demonstrators said they just wanted to proceed to West Asheville. Zack said police would have stopped traffic for them if they had known that.
"As the protesters approached, rocks, fireworks and other objects were thrown at officers," Zack said. "At this time verbal warnings were provided over a loudspeaker."
The chief said protesters did not comply, and tear gas was used.
The photographer said she did not hear a warning and did not see anything thrown until after the tear gas.
A video sent to the photographer showed a man apparently hit in the head with a tear gas canister. The photographer said he approached police and complained, and an officer apologized.
About half the protesters dispersed while the other half asked for an escort back to downtown, which police gave them.
'Corrupted' message
Zack said that some protesters came to police to warn them that other demonstrators had gas masks and were planning to rush them.
He said he understood the why people wanted to demonstrate and personally condemned the death of George Floyd in police custody.
"Certainly the message yesterday was a vital and important," he said.
But the chief said some people were interested in "destruction" not protesting peacefully.
He asked that demonstrators going forward avoid those who "corrupt the message" and to leave when they know it is time.
Escalate
The demonstration moved back downtown where it grew up to an estimated 300 people and escalated with police discharging tear gas and pepper spray and firing plastic bullets, while protesters threw tear gas canisters back at them along with rocks, fireworks and water bottles.
One protester was injured by another during a physical confrontation, Zack said.
Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.
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