PORTLAND, Ore — Fifteen people were arrested late Sunday night after protesters lit fires in front of the police bureau's North Precinct, Portland police said.
The group of protesters gathered at Alberta Park in North Portland for a demonstration and marched to the police's North Precinct.
When the crowd of about 100 arrived at 9:45 p.m., police warned protesters not to come on to the property. They also said the group was blocking traffic on Northeast Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard.
Someone in the crowd set a mattress on fire, a tweet from Sergio Olmos showed.
Another mattress was lit on fire and the fire department was called in to extinguish it, press on scene reported.
By around 1 a.m. Tuesday, the majority of protesters had gone.
Police did not declare a riot or unlawful assembly.
One person taken into custody had a glass jar filled with flammable liquid, police said. Another had a dish soap bottle full of flammable liquid with a wick attached to it.
The following 15 people were arrested during the night:
- Cole Cunningham, 38, of Portland -- Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree, Resisting Arrest
- Adam Layee, 36, unknown residence -- Reckless Burning, Possession of a Destructive Device
- Camillo Masagli, 26, of Portland -- Reckless Burning
- Stacey Kirshbaum, 54, of San Francisco, California -- Interfering with a Peace Officer
- Gerald Kohler, 19, of Oregon City, Oregon - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Brennan Schill, 23, of Mesa, Arizona - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Sean Lopez, 25, of Portland - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Rachel Raffaelli-Wong, 29, of Sacramento, California - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Daniel Glenn, 36, of Portland - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Lucas Angell-Atchison, 25, of Portland - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Tayler Hansen, 20, of Utah - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Ronald Curteman, 24, of Vancouver, Washington - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Obadiah Powell, 20, of Portland - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Scarlet Passmore, 28, of Portland - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
- Deidra Watts, 25, of Vancouver, Washington - Interfering with a Peace Officer, Disorderly Conduct in the Second Degree
Portland is now entering its 15th week of nightly protests since the killing of George Floyd.
On Saturday night, which marked 100 nights of sustained protests, police declared a riot as protesters marched to the East precinct. 59 people were arrested. Police reported commercial-grade fireworks were launched and “molotov incendiary devices and acid bombs were used in the area.”
Neighbors were upset that CS gas was used in a residential area. One man said there were clouds of the gas in his neighborhood and some of it seeped into his house.
Mayor Wheeler released a statement on Sunday saying, “Nights like last night aren’t safe for anyone involved, and don’t move reform forward. I restricted the use of CS to life safety situations, and the Incident Commander determined that its use was necessary last night at least in part because of the fires being set in the neighborhood. I welcome an open and frank discussion about what tools officers should use, which they should not, and where to draw the lines."