Holly MatkinAtlanta, GA – Rioters shattered a window at an Atlanta police station and attacked officers with fireworks and trash cans on Tuesday night.
The precinct came under siege after a group gathered at Woodruff Park on Aug. 25 to protest the Aug. 23 officer-involved shooting of 29-year-old Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Video footage showed Blake fighting with police and carrying an object that may have been a knife before he was shot while reaching into his vehicle.
His father told ABC News that his son was hit by eight of the officer’s bullets and had been left paralyzed from the waist down.
He said doctors do not yet know if his son’s paralysis will be permanent.
The Atlanta protest kicked off at 8 p.m. on Tuesday night, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Over 100 people gathered at the park over the course of the next hour.
BREAKING NEWS! TWITTER FEEDS SHOW AN ATLANTA POLICE STATION UNDER ATTACK*AWAITING FURTHER DETAILS pic.twitter.com/Fe24nVCva8
— ujinn (@ujinn30519925) August 26, 2020
At approximately 9 p.m., the group left the park and marched to the Atlanta Police Department’s (APD) Zone 5 Precinct at Andrew Young International Boulevard and Ted Turner Drive.
Along the way, rioters tore down scaffolding from a construction site and threw it in the street, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
RIGHT NOW— People are placing large metal strips at the corner of Andrew Young International and Ted Turner. A few have busted a window at @Atlanta_Police Zone 5 @FOX5Atlanta pic.twitter.com/8EB3NUq1gk
— Alex Whittler (@AlexWhittler) August 26, 2020
They also moved several police barricades into the roadway.
The mob converged on the precinct and began spray-painting a wall with graffiti, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Rioters smashed out a window of the police station just before officers headed outside to arrest one of the spray-painting vandals.
Things heating up in Atlanta#kenoshauprising pic.twitter.com/4YWapDtEKE
— Acid Vitalist League (@AcidVitalism) August 26, 2020
But as they moved in to make the arrest, members of the group began throwing fireworks, water bottles, and garbage cans at the officers, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Police fired less-lethal projectiles at the mob while officers in full riot gear moved in to disperse the crowd.
Rioters clash with police officers in #Atlanta, #Georgia pic.twitter.com/jo7gZhkJ2B
— SV News 🚨 (@SVNewsAlerts) August 26, 2020
“It appears that there has been some property damage to the precinct located on Ted Turner (Drive) due to the protesters,” APD spokesperson Officer TaSheena Brown told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution after the crowd was broken up. “We are continuing to monitor the situation and their movements. At this time, it appears to be a large group of protesters in various areas.”
“This was not a peaceful protest,” the APD told WAGA in a statement. “Fireworks were discharged, frozen water bottles and rocks were thrown at police officers.”
#Atlanta: #Kenosha is not the only one seeing unrest tonight. Law enforcement in Atlanta are pushing #BlackLivesMatter back w/tear gas #AtlantaProtest https://t.co/Vh05yFeUrG
— Slightly Offens*ve (@SlightlyOffens) August 26, 2020
A total of eight rioters were arrested during the overnight mayhem, WSB reported.
Police said one officer was injured after being hit with Mace, according to WAGA.
Sandy Malone
