5 Officers Injured, 6 Arrested After Two Protests Turn Violent In Downtown Sacramento
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – Rallies between two groups in downtown Sacramento turned violent Saturday and resulted in at least six arrests and five injured officers, the Sacramento Police Department said.
Sacramento police said the six people arrested are facing charges ranging from felony assault on officers and weapons possession charges. The injured officers suffered what the police department described as minor injuries.
Sacramento police said over 160 officers were assisted by outside agencies to keep the crowds separated.
At around 3 p.m., officers on the scene deemed the demonstrations as an unlawful assembly. Sacramento police said objects were thrown at officers and both groups pepper-sprayed and confronted each other.
A group of around 50 people dressed in all black took metal poles from a construction site and continued marching on with them, police said.
See various photos below from the scene.
A Defend Sacramento rally began at around 11 a.m. at Roosevelt Park at 9th and P streets.
A disclaimer on the flyer for the march said: "May be subject to bear mace, angry white supremacists, & direct confrontation with Proud Boys."
Another group participated in the Million MAGA march, which began at noon at the California State Capitol in downtown Sacramento. Both groups eventually met and clashed at the Capitol.
Sacramento police said the groups were mostly dispersed just before 3:30 p.m.