PORTLAND, OR—A Portland protest on Sunday, August 30 resulted in the declaration of an unlawful assembly and 29 people being arrested. The protest occurred one night after a fatal shooting during an encounter between a group of President Donald Trump supporters and a group of people opposing Trump.
At about 8:30 p.m., a group of about 150 protesters started marching from Laurelhurst Park to the Kelly Building, an office for Portland Police and the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, said the Portland Police Bureau (PPB). The Oregonian reported that the crowd was smaller than recent weeks, and was diminishing as time passed during the night.
Multiple vehicles were used to block traffic, and they ignored the police’s direction to move the cars, and officers began making arrests and towing vehicles away. While police officers were staying back in a parking lot, a part of demonstrators wearing protective gear and carrying shields began throwing objects including rocks and eggs at officers and police cars, the police reported.
The Portland Police ordered people to stop throwing objects, otherwise people would be subject to arrest and citation. The crowd did not follow the instructions, so the police declared an unlawful assembly at 10:40 p.m., requesting them to disperse to the west.
Most of the crowd did not leave, and officers began arresting numerous individuals while pushing the crowd to the west. Authorities found two people possessing handguns, and others with knives, rocks, and an expandable baton noted the Portland Police Bureau. The Oregonian reported police officers fired pepper balls at the crowd. Selective arrests were also made, including people who claimed to be press, but failed to show certification to the police.
By 1:30 a.m., the majority of the crowd had left the area around the Kelly Building, authorities reported. Individuals in their 20s and 30s were arrested and face charges that include Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree and Interfering with a Peace Officer. Two of the people arrested were teenagers.
