USA TODAY International Edition
More Sacramento protests planned
Anger over Stephon Clark’s death simmers
SAN FRANCISCO — More events are planned for this week in Sacramento as the city continues to deal with outrage over the death of Stephon Clark, an unarmed black man who was killed by police on March 18.
Sunday was calm after a tense interaction during a peaceful vigil Saturday evening in which a sheriff’s SUV hit a protester.
“Be on the lookout” for upcoming rallies and protests, the Sacramento Black Lives Matter group said on its Facebook page Sunday.
“We will continue to demand justice for not just Stephon, but for all lives that have been unjustly taken at the hands of law enforcement,” it said.
Saturday’s incident occurred at around 8:40 p.m. when about 150 people gathered at a vigil south of the city.
Sacramento County Sheriff’s deputies driving two marked patrol cars were surrounded by a group of protesters who “began yelling while pounding and kicking the vehicles’ exterior,” according to a statement by Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Shaun Hampton.
One of the patrol cars sounded the siren four times, then an officer used the car’s loudspeaker to say, “Back away from my vehicle.” He then drove away from the crowd at a slow pace, footage aired by ABC10, a local Sacramento station, shows.
The second patrol car drove behind the first and struck Wanda Cleveland, a protester who was walking across the street, knocking her to the ground. The patrol car left the scene.
Sacramento Metro Fire Department personnel responded and took Cleveland to Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center, where she was treated for bruises on her arm and the back of her head, the Sacramento Bee reported.
Cleveland was described by the Bee as a former para-educator in a local school district and a regular at Sacramento City Council meetings. At the hospital she told the paper that she began walking to the curb after the first patrol car made the request to move, but that the second patrol car made no request.
“He never even stopped. It was a hit and run. If I did that I’d be charged,” she said.
During the incident, the patrol vehicle “sustained scratches, dents and a shattered rear window. The damage to the vehicle was not a result of the collision involving the pedestrian but was caused by vandals in the crowd,” Hampton said in a statement.
An internal review is being conducted by the Sheriff’s Department. The California Highway Patrol also is investigating, the Sheriff’s Department said.
After the incident, about 150 protesters stayed in the intersection, shutting down traffic in all directions, video footage shows. A small group walked to a nearby Sheriff’s Department station but stopped well away from it, chanting “hit and run.”
A helicopter overhead ordered them to leave or be arrested and they returned to the main protest.
Tensions were heightened following the release Friday of an independent autopsy report by Clark’s family, which found that he had been shot eight times, most of the bullets hitting him in the back. Clark was 22.
A rally for Clark on Saturday featured retired Sacramento Kings basketball player Matt Barnes.
Barnes has been supportive of the family and attended Clark’s funeral on Thursday, which attracted hundreds, including civil right activist Al Sharpton.
At the Saturday rally, Barnes called for change. “They killed Stephon Clark. They continue to kill us,” he told the crowd, offering solutions, such as officers spending more time in the communities they patrol.