Olympia — A gathering of Proud Boys and counter-protesters outside City Hall in downtown Olympia Saturday afternoon was peaceful, the Olympia police chief said.
“We did have some folks show up,” Chief Aaron Jelcick said Sunday.
He estimated the total size of the gathering at around 40 people. The majority who showed up were members of a right-wing group known as Proud Boys as well as about 10 counter-protesters, Jelcick said.
The two sides gathered for about 90 minutes, he estimated.
“Basically nothing significant happened throughout the day public safety-wise,” Jelcick said.
He said police communicated to both sides that they were free to exercise their right to free speech, but to also keep the gathering peaceful.
“And that’s exactly what happened,” he said,
The Proud Boys announced their intention to gather Saturday afternoon following a clash on Sept. 4 that resulted in a member of their group being shot in the ankle.