IMPD: 30 businesses damaged and 27 arrests after overnight protests
UPDATE: Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Police Chief Randal Taylor said multiple people were injured and businesses and city property was damaged.
Taylor said 27 people were arrested overnight in connection to the protests. He said about 30 businesses were damaged and five IMPD cars were also damaged.
He said three officers and three protesters were also injured overnight.
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said he is saddened after people and businesses were injured after protests broke out late Friday night and continued through early Saturday morning in the city.
“Like so many in Indianapolis, I was horrified by the needless killing of George Floyd. I also recognize that the frustration and anger on display over the last few days isn’t new – it has been felt by communities of color for hundreds of years in a country that has far too often fallen short of providing liberty and justice for all,” Hogsett said in a statement to News 8 Saturday morning. “The systemic racism of our past and present must be acknowledged and addressed. At a successful protest that occurred last night, hundreds of residents did just that, peacefully exercising their right to free speech.”
Shattered glass and vandalism left behind mark the end of a long night of disruption downtown. The city is bracing for what could come during another protest planned for 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the Indiana War Memorial.
The doors of a CVS store downtown on Ohio Street were broken into and the store was set on fire as protesters took to the streets of downtown Indianapolis standing in solidarity with protesters in Minneapolis after the death of George Floyd.
The events happened after Hogsett said a successful protest ended and a “smaller group of individuals abandoned this message of positive change.”
“While the emotions that fueled this vandalism may be justified, the actions that were taken and the harm that it has caused are simply unacceptable and did nothing to further the cause of progress,” Hogsett said.
The mayor said three law enforcement officers were injured during the protests. Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department report a Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy was shot at. The deputy was not injured and did not return fire, according to IMPD.
You can read the mayor’s statement in full below:
Like so many in Indianapolis, I was horrified by the needless killing of George Floyd. I also recognize that the frustration and anger on display over the last few days isn’t new – it has been felt by communities of color for hundreds of years in a country that has far too often fallen short of providing liberty and justice for all. The systemic racism of our past and present must be acknowledged and addressed. At a successful protest that occurred last night, hundreds of residents did just that, peacefully exercising their right to free speech.
Unfortunately, after the organizers of that event ended the protest, a smaller group of individuals abandoned this message of positive change. I am saddened that so many people and businesses were injured in the violence that ensued. While the emotions that fueled this vandalism may be justified, the actions that were taken and the harm that it has caused are simply unacceptable and did nothing to further the cause of progress.
Last night’s injuries included three law enforcement officers, as well as an individual who received serious injuries while kicking in glass and was saved when an IMPD officer applied a tourniquet and delivered life-saving care. I also want to recognize the actions of the Indianapolis Fire Department to contain multiple fires that were set, as well as our local media that provided necessary journalism under incredibly difficult circumstances.
Our office and the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department remain committed to ensuring the safety of peaceful protesters, and I would ask all who speak out in the days that follow to reject the tactics of those who would diminish a movement toward national action into unproductive destruction.
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett