30 Arrested, 3 Officers Injured In Oakland Anti-Trump Protest
OAKLAND (CBS SF) – Oakland police arrested 30 protesters and cited 11 others on the second night of protests over the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States.
The alleged crimes included assault on an officer, vandalism, unlawful assembly, failure to disperse and firearm possession, police said.
Three officers were injured at the protest.
Police deployed tear gas several times throughout the night to keep members of the crowd from throwing rocks, bottles, fireworks, M-80s and Molotov cocktails at officers.
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Twelve other law enforcement agencies were called in to assist Oakland police, including police from San Leandro, Hayward, Fremont, Alameda, Livermore, Newark, Pleasanton, Berkeley and the University of California at Berkeley.
Sheriff's deputies from Alameda and Solano counties as well as California Highway Patrol officers were also on the scene, Oakland police said.
Oakland firefighters and police extinguished about 40 fires. One incident of arson to a downtown business and five medical calls were reported, police said.
The protest gathered at Frank Ogawa Plaza at around 4:40 p.m., growing from a few hundred to approximately 7,000.
Protesters chanted "not our president" and carried signs reading "Pussy grabs back," "Donald Trump is a rapist" and "Secede #CalExit."
Oakland police officers marched on the edges of the crowds through the downtown area. Later in the evening, a few members of the crowd began vandalizing local businesses.
The protest was declared an unlawful assembly after 8 p.m. when members of the crowd began assaulting officers with rocks, bottles and explosives.
Around 9:15 p.m. police closed Telegraph Avenue from the 1700 block to the 2100 block. The California Highway Patrol also closed the Broadway off-ramp from northbound Interstate Highway 880 for more than 30 minutes.
Just after 9:30 p.m., police told protesters to disperse from the loudspeaker of a helicopter.
By 10:30 p.m., the crowd had waned to about 150.
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf spoke about the protests Thursday morning.
"It is no way to protest this election, to trash the most progressive, diverse, inclusive city in America," said Schaaf.
She also explained that police don't do more to stop vandals because it often incites more violence. Protesters have vowed to return to the streets of Oakland Thursday night.
A few instances of vandalism were reported early Wednesday morning, after a protest broke out immediately following the election results Tuesday night.
Those protesters walked into traffic on state Highway 24, leading to a woman suffering major injuries when she was struck by a vehicle, according to California Highway Patrol officers.
The driver pulled over, but vandals attacked her car and broke a back window.
Several fires were set on Telegraph Avenue and Broadway. The first protest died down by about 3 a.m.
Another anti-Trump protest broke out at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Powell and Market streets, leading to delays on several MUNI lines.
Police described that protest as nonviolent. San Francisco police officers said that no arrests had been made and no dispersal order had been issued.
Berkeley police said that a third group of protesters was headed south on Telegraph Avenue from Dwight Way around 7:10 p.m. By 7:49 p.m., they had moved into Oakland.
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