Portland anti-Trump demonstration ends in gunfire following fourth night of protests
Gunfire broke out during an anti-Donald Trump protest in Portland, Oregon early Saturday and resulted in a man being hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to law enforcement.
The Portland Police Bureau said the incident unfolded on the Morrison Bridge early Saturday morning when an altercation occurred between protesters and the occupants of a vehicle.
“Preliminary information indicates that a suspect was in a vehicle on the bridge and there was a confrontation with someone in the protest. The suspect got out of the vehicle and fired multiple shots injuring the victim,” police said in a statement Saturday.
Neither the victim’s identity nor the name of a suspect were immediately disclosed, but police said they were searching for a possible gunman described as an African American male in his late teens wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans.
Saturday’s shooting occurred toward the tail end of a protest waged in Portland several hours earlier in opposition to Donald Trump being elected the next president of the United States.
Demonstrations first erupted in Portland on Tuesday evening as Mr. Trump defeated Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton in their race to the White House. Similar rallies and marches have occurred in the wake of Mr. Trump’s election in cities across the country this week, but Saturday morning’s incident in Portland is believed to be the first time any post-election protests have ended in gunfire.
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Shawna Hall, a resident of nearby North Plains, told The Oregonian newspaper that she was filming the fourth consecutive round of protests when she witnessed Saturday morning’s shooting.
Ms. Hall, 28, said demonstrators had walked west on Morrison Bridge and that some of them had blocked eastbound lanes shortly before the shooting. The car carrying the suspected gunman navigated around other vehicles and stopped on the bridge, at which point a passenger exited the car and pulled a gun, The Oregonian reported.
“There was a non-physical confrontation between car occupants and protesters, Hall said, and protesters told the occupants to leave. Another passenger ushered the gunman into the car,” the newspaper reported.
The vehicle had reportedly moved another 100 feet across the bridge when all of its occupants exited the car and a physical altercation ensued with protesters.
“The gunman shot multiple times into the air, she said, and at some point shot the man,” The Oregonian reported. Another witness told the newspaper that the victim appeared to have been shot in the leg.
Sgt. Pete Simpson, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau, told the city’s KOIN news station that protesters were “much more aggressive and confrontational with police” on Friday evening compared with demonstrations that occurred in the days prior.
Protests are expected to continue in Portland and elsewhere throughout the weekend, though Sgt. Simpson told the TV station that “perhaps another day would be better.”
“The city is fatigued and whatever message you’re trying to convey will be lost,” he said after Saturday’s shooting, adding that there were “groups out to hijack a (peaceful) protest into mayhem.”
Gunfire broke out during an anti-Donald Trump protest in Portland, Oregon early Saturday and resulted in a man being hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to law enforcement.
The Portland Police Bureau said the incident unfolded on the Morrison Bridge early Saturday morning when an altercation occurred between protesters and the occupants of a vehicle.
“Preliminary information indicates that a suspect was in a vehicle on the bridge and there was a confrontation with someone in the protest. The suspect got out of the vehicle and fired multiple shots injuring the victim,” police said in a statement Saturday.
Neither the victim’s identity nor the name of a suspect were immediately disclosed, but police said they were searching for a possible gunman described as an African American male in his late teens wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans.
Saturday’s shooting occurred toward the tail end of a protest waged in Portland several hours earlier in opposition to Donald Trump being elected the next president of the United States.
Demonstrations first erupted in Portland on Tuesday evening as Mr. Trump defeated Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton in their race to the White House. Similar rallies and marches have occurred in the wake of Mr. Trump’s election in cities across the country this week, but Saturday morning’s incident in Portland is believed to be the first time any post-election protests have ended in gunfire.
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Shawna Hall, a resident of nearby North Plains, told The Oregonian newspaper that she was filming the fourth consecutive round of protests when she witnessed Saturday morning’s shooting.
Ms. Hall, 28, said demonstrators had walked west on Morrison Bridge and that some of them had blocked eastbound lanes shortly before the shooting. The car carrying the suspected gunman navigated around other vehicles and stopped on the bridge, at which point a passenger exited the car and pulled a gun, The Oregonian reported.
“There was a non-physical confrontation between car occupants and protesters, Hall said, and protesters told the occupants to leave. Another passenger ushered the gunman into the car,” the newspaper reported.
The vehicle had reportedly moved another 100 feet across the bridge when all of its occupants exited the car and a physical altercation ensued with protesters.
“The gunman shot multiple times into the air, she said, and at some point shot the man,” The Oregonian reported. Another witness told the newspaper that the victim appeared to have been shot in the leg.
Sgt. Pete Simpson, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau, told the city’s KOIN news station that protesters were “much more aggressive and confrontational with police” on Friday evening compared with demonstrations that occurred in the days prior.
Protests are expected to continue in Portland and elsewhere throughout the weekend, though Sgt. Simpson told the TV station that “perhaps another day would be better.”
“The city is fatigued and whatever message you’re trying to convey will be lost,” he said after Saturday’s shooting, adding that there were “groups out to hijack a (peaceful) protest into mayhem.”
