LEGAL
Seattle will move to dismantle protest zone,
mayor says
The mayor did not give an immediate timeline for
clearing out the occupation.
By
ASSOCIATED PRESS
06/22/2020
11:23 PM EDT
SEATTLE —
Faced with growing pressure to crack down on an “occupied” protest zone
following two weekend shootings, Seattle’s mayor said Monday that officials
will move to wind down the blocks-long span of city streets taken over two
weeks ago that President Donald Trump asserted is run by “anarchists.”
Mayor Jenny
Durkan said the violence was distracting from changes sought by thousands of
peaceful protesters opposing racial inequity and police brutality. She said at
a news conference that the city is working with the community to bring the
“Capitol Hill Occupied Protest” zone, or CHOP, to an end and that police soon
would move back into a precinct building they had largely abandoned in the
area.
Durkan also
vowed to address some of the protesters’ demands, including investing more in
Black communities, reimagining policing in cooperation with community leaders,
and pushing for accountability measures and statewide reform of police unions.
The mayor
did not give an immediate timeline for clearing out the occupation but said
“additional steps” would be examined if people don’t leave voluntarily. With
scores of people camping in a park in the protest zone, Durkan said peaceful
demonstrations could continue, but nighttime disorder had to stop.
“The
cumulative impacts of the gatherings and protests and the nighttime atmosphere
and violence has led to increasingly difficult circumstances for our businesses
and residents,” Durkan said. “The impacts have increased and the safety has
decreased.”
A shooting
Sunday night was the second in less than 48 hours at the edge of the zone,
which is named for the Capitol Hill neighborhood near downtown Seattle and
emerged during nationwide protests over the killing of George Floyd at the
hands of Minneapolis police.
The
17-year-old victim was shot in the arm and declined to speak with detectives,
police said. Gunfire early Saturday left a 19-year-old man dead and another
person critically wounded.
The victims
were taken to a hospital by volunteer medics in private cars, and police said
they were met by a hostile crowd that prevented them from immediately getting
to the scene.
It was not
apparent if the shootings had anything to do with the protest — gunfire
sometimes occurs in the neighborhood, especially on warm summer nights.
Protesters
cordoned off the several-block area near the police’s East Precinct after
Seattle riot squads unleashed tear gas, pepper spray and flash-bangs on large
crowds of mostly peaceful protesters, drawing condemnation from many city
leaders and a federal court order temporarily banning the use of the weapons on
demonstrators.
After
police largely abandoned the building, protesters took over the area — with
demonstrators painting a large “Black Lives Matter” mural on the street,
handing out free food, playing music and planting a community garden. Its
existence incensed Trump, who criticized Durkan and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee,
both Democrats.
Peace has
prevailed during the day. On Monday, people lounged on the turf at a park,
while volunteers handed out food, water and toiletries. Artists painted designs
on wooden barricades, and a few candles burned in front of a sign on the police
building listing people killed by officers.
At night,
however, the atmosphere has become more charged, with demonstrators marching
and armed volunteer guards keeping watch.
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