Demonstrators are expected to reconvene near St. Louis Sunday afternoon for a third day of protests following the acquittal of a white former police officer in the fatal shooting of a black man.
Protests turned violent for second night late Saturday, as a small group of demonstrators refused to disperse, breaking windows at dozens of businesses and throwing objects at police, who moved in with hundreds of officers in riot gear to make arrests.
The confrontation took place in the Delmar Loop area of University City, a suburb about 10 miles (16 kilometers) west of St. Louis near Washington University. The area is known for concert venues, restaurants, shops and bars and includes the Blueberry Hill club where rock legend Chuck Berry played for many years.
City and county police tweeted that they had arrested at least nine people.
Demonstrators have been protesting a judge’s ruling Friday clearing ex-officer Jason Stockley of first-degree murder in the 2011 shooting of 24-year-old Anthony Lamar Smith.
(AP)
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After reading the background of this case it seems to me that the black community is doing themselves a disservice by protesting court rulings merely based on the color of the defendant’s skin. These people are protesting the death of a convicted criminal charged with theft and illegal possession of a fire arm! There is video evidence of him ramming the police vehicle not once, but twice! There are both witnesses and video evidences that he refused to get out of the vehicle and was searching for something (possibly his gun). If this guy would have been any other color than black there would not be even one protester! I really feel that all these unjustified protests will someday backfire on them unfortunately.