Demonstrators face CMPD in protective gear in tense night of protests in West Charlotte

Hundreds of people marched in Charlotte Friday night to protest the death of George Floyd in Minnesota. Tensions rose around two hours after the start when some protesters damaged police property, which prompted Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police to call in officers in full protective gear.

The demonstration was the one of the largest gatherings in Charlotte since the civil unrest following the fatal police shooting of Keith Lamont Scott in 2016 when some protesters turned violent.

Protests raged in other cities across the country Friday night, from outside the White House to downtown Atlanta. Floyd died after an officer kneeled on his neck for around eight minutes during his arrest that was captured on video. That officer was charged Friday with third-degree murder.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police issued an order to disperse around 9 p.m. and tweeted that the “Civil Emergency Unit” had been deployed.

The tires on at least one police car were slashed and at least two windows were broken at the CMPD substation on Beatties Ford Road, where the protest started. City Council member Braxton Winston was arrested for failure to disperse around 8 p.m., according to arrest records.

On the streets, dozens of officers in full protective gear and dozens more on bicycles formed a barricade around the CMPD substation. Police used pepper spray, tear gas or some other substance that witnesses say burned their eyes and forced them to cough.

The scene was starkly different to when the protest started in front of the substation before the sun had set.

At the start

The protest started around 6:30 p.m. with over 200 protesters outside the CMPD substation on Beattie’s Ford Road. They held signs and chanted “F— the police,” “No justice, no peace” and “This is what democracy looks like.”

Several police officers were among crowd hoping to engage the protesters in conversation. Some protesters spoke to them and others refused. Capt. Zeru Chickoree, who works in CMPD’s Freedom Division, said the goal was to answer any questions the community might have.

“No officer here at CMPD is trained to lay their knee or their shin across the neck of a suspect,” he said.

The protesters eventually started to march down Beattie’s Ford road and stood in the intersection at LaSalle Street. However, after CMPD officers told the protesters they could only stand there for five minutes, the crowd marched back down Beattie’s Ford Road toward the substation.

“I told (the officer) George Floyd is gone forever,” said George Boulding, who has lived in Charlotte for over 20 years.

“I am so angry and upset and heartbroken to see not just repeated police killings of people of color but also to know that white people redlined the neighborhoods years and years ago and it still hasn’t gotten better for so many black and brown neighborhoods,” said former Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, who was at the protest.

While the protest was publicized over Facebook, it is unclear who organized it. The group linked to the protest’s event page is called “Justice for Police Brutality - Charlotte” and does not appear to have any posts from before May 2020.

After the sun sets, protesters remain

After a police cruiser had been damaged and at least two windows at the CMPD substation had been broken, dozens of officers in full protective or on bicycles showed up and began to form a barricade around the building around 9 p.m. Friday. Officers also made several arrests for property damage, CMPD tweeted.

Over the next few hours, police ordered the crowd over speakers to disperse and gradually advanced, pushing people across the intersection at Oaklawn Avenue. Some people ran away when officers used pepper spray, tear gas or some other substance. A helicopter with a bright light circled overhead.

By 10:25 p.m., tensions were starting to subside, but some protesters continued to throw water bottles at police.

“Obviously we were allowing for the peaceful protest, and then it turned on us,” CMPD Chief Kerr Putney said later in the evening to WBTV, The Observer’s news partner.

The crowd had surrounded some of the officers and some protesters took the bicycle of one officer, he said. Around 11 p.m. Putney said that officers were still in the process of establishing and maintaining order.

“We have to have order, and we’re going to,” he said. “You should be proud of your CMPD police officers. They showed restraint, but they took care of business.”

Around 11 p.m., protesters broke into nearby businesses, including Food Lion on Beattie’s Ford Road. Around midnight, two dozen officers in full protective gear stood in front of the business while the store’s alarm rang, warning of a burglary. Shortly before 1 a.m., more officers arrived and pushed the crowd of people out of the parking lot toward the road.

Braxton Winston tweeted around 2 a.m. that he was at home.

“Thank you all for your support. There are a lot of people that are still in the process. There is a lot of work to do,” he said over Twitter.

Charlotte officials ask for peace

During the protests, Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles tweeted a plea for peace: “Urging those in our community who are protesting tonight to refrain from violence. We can have activism and protests without violence.”

Lyles later told WBTV, “We need to have protests. We need to have activism. We need to have people step up and say how do we change this. But … we need to be respectful of our own heritage and our own neighborhood, and I don’t see that violence helps us very much do that.”

City council members expressed support over peaceful protests but also emphasized the importance of safety.

City Council member Malcolm Graham, whose district includes the Beattie’s Ford corridor, said he’s concerned about residents who live in the area.

“I’m standing with those who want to peacefully protest, but that’s not what we’re seeing tonight,” Graham told The Observer. “It started off pretty peaceful, but then it took a turn ... Protesting is a part of our democracy, but this is not that.”

City Council member James “Smuggie” Michell said Friday’s protests were especially personal, since he was raised on Beatties Ford Road.

“I want the citizens of Charlotte to realize we have made steps — we have continued to make progress,” Mitchell said of CMPD relations with the community. “The dialogue we start tomorrow will be about listening, but listening in a peaceful way about how we can make changes. When you’re looting, looting drowns all of your positive messages.”