Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz sent in the National Guard as demonstrators clashed with police for a third straight day to protest the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after a white officer pinned him to the ground with a knee on his neck in an incident captured on video.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who has called for the police officers involved in the incident to be criminally charged, had requested the assistance.
The Third Precinct police station, which has been a central site for demonstrations, was taken over and set on fire late Thursday, according to local news reports and video posted on social media.
Earlier, a large crowd gathered in a plaza outside the Hennepin County Government Center, waving signs, chanting George Floyd’s name and calling for charges against the officers involved in his arrest. Those demonstrations started peacefully Thursday evening but turned tense when police officers in riot gear approached protesters who screamed at them. Police shot flash-bang grenades and tear gas into the crowds. Protesters marching through downtown, passing by a boarded up Lumber Exchange Building, shouted with their hands up in the air. Some poured milk into their eyes to ease the sting of the gas.
A Minneapolis police station was taken over and set on fire as demonstrators clashed with police while protesting the death of George Floyd https://t.co/xEDntcQLgn
— Newley Purnell (@newley) May 29, 2020