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8 DC Cops Injured, 4 People Stabbed During Clashes Between Antifa And Proud Boys

Holly MatkinDecember 14, 2020

Washington, DC – At least four people were stabbed and 33 rioters were arrested during violent clashes between Antifa and the Proud Boys on Saturday night.

Eight DC Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers were injured as they tried to quell the mayhem, WFAA reported.

At least two of those officers were hospitalized with moderate injuries, according to FOX News.

Black Lives Matter DC organizer April Goggans alleged that MPD “physically protected white supremacists” and allowed them to threaten people and burn Black Lives Matter signs, KNBC reported.

The group has demanded DC Mayor Muriel Bowser “protect” residents from “Trump supporters and white supremacists,” and said Bowser must hold police “accountable for enabling white supremacist violence.”

“We demand that Mayor Bowser and the D.C. Council protect the people of D.C. and promote the values of Black Lives Matter Plaza by taking immediate action to hold the police department accountable and to protect our civil and human rights,” BLM DC declared, according to KNBC.

The chaos on Saturday erupted hours after thousands of President Donald Trump supporters gathered to protest the recent election.

“This isn’t over. This is just beginning,” former Trump campaign spokeswoman Katrina Pierson told rallygoers earlier in the day, according to the New York Post. “We knew that both Republicans and Democrats were against we the people. We are the cavalry. No one’s coming for us.”

At a second pro-Trump rally held at the National Mall, former National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Michael Flynn told supporters that the U.S. is in the midst of “a crucible moment,” the New York Post reported.

“The courts do not decide who the next President of the United States will be,” Flynn said. “This is the start of the greatest revival in the history of one nation under God.”

Trump tweeted about the rallies before he circled over the massive crowds in Marine One twice while on his way to the annual Army-Navy football game on Saturday, the New York Post reported.

“Wow! Thousands of people forming in Washington (D.C.) for Stop the Steal,” the President tweeted ahead of the trip. “Didn’t know about this, but I’ll be seeing them! #MAGA.”

The MPD closed down a large section of the downtown area and blocked off Black Lives Matter Plaza before nightfall in an effort to keep Antifa and the Proud Boys apart as the rallies died down, KDVR reported.

As the scheduled protest concluded, hundreds of Proud Boys squared off against Antifa and local black activists from opposite sides of one city street, while lines of law enforcement officers in riot gear tried to keep them away from one another, according to the news outlet.

Officers repeatedly clashed with both groups throughout the night as they attempted to keep them from attacking one another, according to FOX News.

Both groups launched fireworks at one another at various points, and WUSA reported rioters threw water and smoke projectiles at police.

Officers deployed pepper spray to help break up come of the brawls, videos showed.

Another video showed alleged Proud Boys burning a Black Lives Matter sign out in the street.

BLM signs at two local churches were destroyed, according to KNBC.

Police said at least four people suffered potentially life-threatening injuries after being stabbed outside a bar the Proud Boys were using as a gathering spot, FOX News reported.

It was unclear which groups the victims and their attackers were affiliated with, according to DC Fire Department officials.

The stabbing victims are expected to recover, according to WFAA.

At least two MPD officers were transported to the hospital with moderate injuries due to the overnight violence, FOX News reported.

One video showed police assisting an injured officer as she limped away from one of the riot zone areas, WJLA reported.

At least 33 people were arrested as a result of the rioting, WFAA reported.

Ten were charged with assault on a police officer, 11 were charged with simple assault, six were charged with disorderly conduct, and two were charged with possession of prohibited weapon.

One suspect was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon, and another was charged for resisting arrest.

Two others were arrested for outstanding warrants – one for failing to appear on an out-of-state charge, and one was a fugitive of justice, WFAA reported.

Police said one of the suspects they arrested was in possession of an illegal stun gun, according to WJLA.

Despite the severity of the attacks, Bowser focused her attention on the church vandalisms in a statement she released on Sunday, KNBC reported.

“DC’s faith-based organizations are at the very heart of our community, giving us hope in the face of darkness,” the mayor said. “An attack on them is an attack on all of us. The Mayor’s Office of Religious Affairs and the Metropolitan Police Department are engaging the impacted houses of worship today.”

At least five more rioters were arrested on Friday ahead of the Trump rallies, WRC reported.

Among them was a 35-year-old Virginia man who was charged with carrying a dangerous weapon, inciting violence, and simple assault.

A 52-year-old New York man and two women from Maryland, ages 23 and 26, were charged with simple assault and inciting violence, according to WRC.

A 31-year-old Maryland woman was arrested later in the night on charges of threatening, crossing a police line, assault on a police officer, and resisting arrest.

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Written by
Holly Matkin

Holly is a former probation and parole officer who is married to a sheriff’s deputy. She is a regular contributor to Signature Montana magazine, and has written feature articles for Distinctly Montana magazine.

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