Clashes at Minneapolis protest over police shooting

MINNEAPOLIS -- Tensions rose Wednesday afternoon and night as protests continued over the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man by a Minneapolis police officer.

The shooting has pushed racial tensions in the city's small but concentrated minority community to the fore, with a police precinct being besieged by a makeshift encampment and by hundreds of protesters in recent days.

Police have tried to improve race relations in recent years, and succeeded in some areas. But some community activists say racial disparities - high unemployment rates for blacks, a disproportionate number of arrests for minor crimes and inequities in housing and the school system - have been going on for so long that Sunday's shooting of Jamar Clark, and the reaction from the community, was no surprise.

"We call Minneapolis a tale of two cities: The best of times if you're white, and worst of times if you're black," said Nekima Levy-Pounds, president of the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP, and one of 42 people arrested when protesters shut down an interstate highway Monday night.

Clark, 24, was shot in the head during a confrontation with two officers. Police said he was a suspect in an assault and was interfering with paramedics trying to treat the victim. Police said there was a scuffle, and Clark was shot.

Some people who say they saw the shooting claim Clark wasn't struggling and was handcuffed. Police initially said he wasn't handcuffed, but the state agency that's investigating the shooting, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said one thing it's looking at is whether Clark was restrained.

The president of the Minneapolis police union, Lt. Bob Kroll, said Wednesday in an email to The Associated Press that Clark was "disarming" the officer and wasn't handcuffed.

The officers involved in the shooting were identified Wednesday as Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze, both with seven years of experience including 13 months with the Minneapolis department, but their race wasn't released because it's private under state law. Police in Maple Grove, where Ringgenberg worked before joining the Minneapolis force, said he is white.

Members of the Minneapolis chapter of Black Lives Matter and other demonstrators want police to release video of the shooting, but the BCA has declined to do so, saying it would taint the investigation. The FBI is also undertaking a civil rights investigation.

Clark's family is also pushing for the release of the video, but is calling for peaceful protests, reports CBS Minnesota.

Tensions ramped up Wednesday afternoon when police moved to clear protesters out of the vestibule of the 4th Precinct station where several had been sleeping since the shooting. They pulled down a pop-up shelter and doused a bonfire, prompting protesters to chant, "Shame on you!" before relighting the flame.

Chief Janee Harteau said police have to keep the vestibule clear for safety. She said police have no plans to pull down some 18 tents or stop protests as long as they are peaceful.

As the confrontation extended into the night, police used a chemical irritant to control the crowd of scores of protesters swelling outside the precinct office. CBS Minnesota said the chemical was pepper spray.

Chemical spray was also directed at officers from the crowd, police spokesman John Elder said.

The department tweeted that police used the irritant after officers trying to remove tarps had rocks and bottles thrown at them. Police said they also fired one marking round to identify a man who was throwing bricks.

Police later reported that several officers sustained minor injuries from the items that were thrown and said several squad cars were damaged during the demonstration.

The protests are the latest call for change by a community that has had rocky relations with police.

Minneapolis police Deputy Chief Medaria Arradondo said the department recognizes past grievances between the African-American community and police and is working hard to build trust.

"Even in the midst of protests and demonstrations, we will continue to have important dialogue and conversations to keep moving forward," he said.