Seattle police forcibly clear 'lawless' protest zone
Protesters stand holding up their arms in front of a road blocked by police in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's so-called occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seattle Police finish their sweep Wednesday, July 1, 2020, on the north end of Cal Anderson Park, sweeping everyone off the grounds. (Steve Ringman/The Seattle Times via AP)
A worker removes a rendering of a clenched fist from a Seattle police precinct Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis. (AP P…
A protester stands with her hand up in front of a road blocked by Seattle police in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's so-called occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen)
Seattle police stand on a road in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's so-called occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen)
A protester stands with her hand up in front of a road blocked by Seattle police in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's so-called occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen)
Seattle police block a street with their bikes in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen)
Seattle police block a street with their bicycles in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone early Wednesday, July 1, 2020. Police in Seattle have torn down demonstrators' tents in the city's occupied protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared. (AP Photo/Aron Ranen)
Protesters hold hands in front of a line of police officers blocking a street Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis. (AP Ph…
Police and city workers fill a street occupied hours earlier by an encampment of protesters Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minne…
Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best, center, bumps elbows in greeting with an officer as the chief walks the perimeter of an area police cleared hours earlier Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown foll…
Protesters standing on a rainbow-themed crosswalk holding hands in front of a line of police officers blocking a street Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd whil…
Activist David Lewis motions as he talks with others just outside an area occupied hours earlier by protesters Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd while in poli…
Seattle police take over and re-enter the East Precinct early Wednesday, July 1, 2020 after the area around the police station was occupied by protestors for the last month. (Mike Siegel/The Seattle Times via AP)
Seattle Police walk across Cal Anderson Park Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle as they sweep people away. (Steve Ringman/The Seattle Times via AP)
A woman sits in the street as police officers block a street in an area police cleared hours earlier Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police arrived in force earlier in the day at the "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone set up after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody, and they tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seattle Police Assistant Chief Steve Hirjak carries flowers left from a nearby resident for the chief of police from a Seattle police precinct Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the dea…
A protester encourages others to remain peaceful at a police line Wednesday, July 1, 2020, in Seattle, where streets had been blocked off in an area demonstrators had occupied for weeks. Seattle police showed up in force earlier in the day at the "occupied" protest zone, tore down demonstrators' tents and used bicycles to herd the protesters after the mayor ordered the area cleared following two fatal shootings in less than two weeks. The "Capitol Hill Occupied Protest" zone was set up near downtown following the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Elaine T…
SEATTLE (AP) — Wearing helmets and wielding batons and rifles, Seattle police turned out in force at dawn Wednesday in the city’s “occupied” protest zone after the mayor ordered it cleared following two recent fatal shootings.
Officers stood shoulder-to-shoulder on several streets while others created a makeshift fence with their bicycles, using it to push dozens of protesters back away from the center of the “Capitol Hill Occupied Protest” zone just east of downtown. The group had occupied several blocks around a park for about two weeks after police abandoned a precinct station following standoffs and clashes that were part of the nationwide unrest over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
As residents in the neighborhood watched from balconies, police cleared out the protesters’ tents from the park and made sure no one was left in the park’s bathrooms.
More than three dozen people were arrested, charged with failure to disperse, obstruction, assault and unlawful weapon possession.
“Our job is to support peaceful demonstration but what has happened on these streets over the last two weeks is lawless and it’s brutal and bottom line it is simply unacceptable,” Police Chief Carmen Best said.
One protest organizer, Derrek Allen Jones II, said some demonstrators attempted to stay but were surprised by the early intervention by officers who were “trampling everything I seen in sight, flipping tables.”
“People were trying to hold their ground but you could see the cops literally storm through people’s beds while they were sleeping. And literally say ‘If you don’t get out, we will force you out or arrest you,'" he said.
One man dressed in black was peacefully led away in handcuffs and other demonstrators sat on the wet ground until their small group was handcuffed and detained.
Police also tore down fences that protesters had erected around their tents and used batons to poke inside bushes, apparently looking for people who might be hiding. One officer took down a sign saying “We are not leaving until our demands are met: 1. Defund SPD by 50% now. 2. Fund Black Communities. 3. Free all protesters."
After police evicted the protesters, heavy equipment was used to remove concrete barriers, cart away debris from the encampments while officers strung yellow caution tape from tree to tree warning people not to reenter.
’I was just stunned by the amount of graffiti, garbage and property destruction,” Best said after she walked around the area.
“The recent public safety threats have been well documented," Mayor Jenny Durkan said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon. ”These acts of gun violence resulted in the tragic deaths of two teenagers, with multiple others seriously wounded. Despite continued efforts to deescalate and bring community together, this violence demanded action."
Durkan also said while she supported the police in making arrests Wednesday, she doesn't think many of those arrested for misdemeanors should be prosecuted. She also said she was committed to work that would dismantle systemic racism and build true community safety.
“Events in the Capitol Hill Organized Protest zone this morning, while necessary, should not diminish the cause of racial justice,” Gov. Jay Inslee said in an emailed statement.
Best said in addition to the fatal shootings, robberies, assaults, violence and property crimes have occurred in the area in the last few weeks. She said she wanted police to move back into the precinct so officers could better respond to needs in the area. Protesters have said they should not be blamed for the violence in the area.
There had been mounting calls by critics, including President Donald Trump, to remove protesters. A group of local business owners sued the city, claiming that officials abandoned the area and made it impossible to run businesses because there was no police or fire protection.
U.S. Attorney General William Barr praised Best for what he called “her courage and leadership in restoring the rule of law in Seattle.”
“Chief Best has rightly committed to continue the substantive discussion while ending the violence, which threatens innocent people and undermines the very rule-of-law principles that the protesters profess to defend," he said in a statement.
Seattle Black Collective Voice, which was formed by people in the protest zone, said previously that their work would continue even if they were forced out of that area. On Wednesday afternoon the group said via Twitter, “We don’t end with CHOP.”
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Associated Press video journalist Aron Ranen in Seattle and writer Rachel La Corte in Olympia, Washington, contributed to this report.
