After hundreds of people in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on Sunday took part in destructive protests over a fatal shooting by a cop, the police released bodycam video of the incident.
The video The footage, made public by the Lancaster District Attorney’s Office on Sunday shows, Ricardo Munoz, 27, earlier in the day chasing an officer down the street with a knife before being shot.
The unnamed officer, who has been placed on administrative leave, fired several shots while retreating.
- Police had been called to the 300 block of Laurel Street in Lancaster in response to a domestic disturbance call, LancasterOnline reported.
- Munoz was reportedly becoming aggressive and trying to break into his mother’s home.
- According to a news release issued by the Lancaster Bureau of Police, Munoz was pronounced dead at the scene.
The riot: A crowd of protesters subsequently damaged multiple buildings and department vehicles outside the Lancaster police station, the department said in a statement on Monday.
- Protesters threw bricks through the front of the police station’s window and into the post office, the police said.
- Others hurled “water bottles, glass bottles, rocks, bricks, gallon jugs of liquids and parts of plastic road barricades,” according to the statement.
- Lancaster police said tear gas was used to disperse protesters who failed to follow authorities instructions.
“We ask that acts of protest remain peaceful as violence and destruction of property will become headlines and serve no purpose for the safety and wellbeing of our citizens and neighborhoods,” Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams said in response to the protests.
Backlash? While Americans have generally backed Black Lives Matter and other racial justice protests in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, there are signs public support may be waning amid radical rhetoric and violence by some activists.
Conservative pundits in particular have criticized Black Lives Matter’s practice of protesting even police shootings that appear to be justified.
A poll released by Fox News on Sunday found that 48 of likely voters describe the racial justice related unrest in cities like Portland, Kenosha and New York as riots.
