Portland police arrest 8, fire crowd-control munitions

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland police arrested eight people and fired crowd-control munitions to disperse protesters who threw rocks and bottles during demonstrations in front of law enforcement buildings on Saturday night and Sunday morning.

The series of confrontations began late Saturday, the 30th consecutive day of demonstrations outside the Multnomah County Justice Center, where protesters used fencing and street barricades to block off a street, according to KOIN-TV and the Portland Police Bureau.

Portland police said that lasers were shined into officers eyes and people threw rocks, bottles and paint at them during the demonstration. After using loudspeakers to tell the protesters to leave, officers used riot control munitions to disperse the crowd, police said.

It was unclear what munitions specifically were used.

Police said the protesters later reassembled in front a police precinct and arrests were made when some in the crowd refused to disperse. An officer suffered minor injuries after being struck in the face with a skateboard.

The clashes between police and protesters continued until about 2 a.m. Sunday, with crowd-control munitions also used at a second site where two dumpsters were pulled into the street and several garbage cans lit on fire.

Police are barred under a temporary federal court order from using crowd-control munitions in situations where people engaged in passive resistance could be injured by the devices. Police did not immediately respond to questions about the confrontation submitted by email.

Thousands of people in the liberal Pacific Northwest city have turned out every night for a month since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

Much of the protesting has been peaceful, but early Friday a group of several hundred demonstrators set fire to a precinct building while people were inside, the Portland Police Bureau said. In that incident, police used a type of tear gas to disperse the crowd.