Shots fired during protest at Capitol
Pepper bullets used against crowd blocking traffic on Interstate 25
What started as a small, peaceful protest in Denver, demanding justice for George Floyd, escalated into chaos Thursday evening after someone fired gunshots near the Capitol, sending demonstrators scattering across the city as police fired tear gas canisters and pepper spray.
Tension built throughout the night as protesters and police clashed in the heart of the city. The crowds grew larger as the night progressed, and, about 9:15 p.m., Denver police fired tear gas and pepper spray to disperse hundreds who remained on the Capitol lawn. People ran in all directions through Capitol Hill and Civic Center to escape the fumes.
Tyler Stevens of Denver said he was at
the Capitol when shots were fired about 30 minutes into the protest. Police escorted people into the building for protection.
“We stand with Minneapolis, like my sign says,” Stevens said. “If nothing’s going to change, there are people around the whole country who are going to stand up.”
A few protesters were arrested, but Kurt Barnes, a Denver police spokesman, said he did not know an exact number or what they were arrested for.
Graffiti was painted on the building’s steps, doors and walls. Windows of a police car and a state senator’s truck were smashed.
Officers confirmed six or seven shots were fired about 5:35 p.m. toward the Capitol, Barnes said. There were no known injuries. He said the initial 911 caller was standing at the intersection of 15th Street and West Colfax Avenue. It was not immediately clear from where exactly the shots were fired, Barnes said.
Police did not have anybody in custody or know the motive of the shooter, Barnes said.
“We do believe that the shots were toward the Capitol, but we do not at this point have any correlation to the protest or the protesters,” Barnes said.
The demonstrators had gathered to call for justice on behalf of Floyd, a Minneapolis man who died Monday as officers pinned him to the ground — including one who kept his knee on Floyd’s neck — for eight minutes. About the time shots were fired, the protesters had started marching, winding down Colfax Avenue to the 16th Street Mall and into LoDo.
Police briefly held protesters in place at Coors Field. However, when people began to move, the march splintered into different groups.
Just before 7 p.m. a few dozen marched onto I-25, where they blocked traffic in both directions. Police fired pepper spray to get them to move, and footage from a television helicopter showed people running.
Gwen Kubik, a Capitol Hill resident who joined the protest, said they saw a man get hit “square in the head” with tear gas. Kubik also felt the sting.
“It started as a dry cough, and then it starts to get in your eyes, like if you ever touched your eyes with a hot pepper,” Kubick said. “That was my first time experiencing tear gas personally, but I know to bring milk from some organizations I’m part of online.”
At the Capitol, protesters surrounded a police car, and officers used nonlethal weapons to move people. One witness tweeted a video of a car running over at least three protesters on Lincoln Street before speeding away. The pedestrians did not appear to be seriously injured.
Denver police closed Broadway and Lincoln Street around the Capitol and I-25 in the area of 15th Street because of the demonstrations.
State Rep. Leslie Herod, D-Denver, was watching the protesters when she heard the gunshots.
“State Patrol is on scene. They told us all to get down and run. They worked to clear the scene,” Herod said. “They (the shots) came from down by the
RTD bus stop, up toward the Capitol. I did not see who shot; I was not looking at that. It was multiple shots. “They shot into a crowd of people protesting police brutality. It’s an act of violence against our community.”
State Rep. Jonathan Singer, D-Longmont, said he was with Herod watching the protest on the west side of the Capitol when he heard the shots.
“I would say we probably heard about seven or eight shots come, probably one block west of us, by the bus stop at Colfax and Lincoln. Honestly, we saw a lot of people running. I did not see a shooter.”
The protest started at 5 p.m. with people carrying posters that read “Black Lives Matter” and chanting “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Racist police have got to go” as they stood on the Capitol steps. Many wore masks because of public health concerns due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s too easy to say we’re in a pandemic,” Kira Pratt of Denver said. “Black people are at risk every day just living.”
Joel Britton, a protester, had just arrived at the Capitol when the shots were fired. “People were scattering and running inside the Capitol,” he said.
The protest, called “Justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Sean Reed & Others,” was organized on Facebook by two women, who called for a peaceful demonstration.
Denver’s protests followed violent protests in Minneapolis, where people set fires and looted business. Protests Wednesday night in Los Angeles closed a major freeway.
Just as the protest began, the Denver Police Department tweeted a message from Chief Paul Pazen, who extended sympathy to Floyd’s family. The message also explained that the Minneapolis officers’ method of restraining Floyd would be a violation of Denver’s use-of-force policy.
“The actions and type of force used by the Minneapolis
police officers in the video are inexcusable and contrary to how we train officers,” Pazen’s statement said. “Treating those we serve with respect is of the utmost importance to me as chief and those who make up the Denver Police Department. The Denver Police Department values the sanctity of life and is committed to respecting and protecting the dignity, safety and rights of our community members.”
Denver police officers at the scene wore their regular street uniforms along with face masks to protect them from the virus. However, they began donning riot gear once the shots were fired.