Daughter of House Democratic Whip Clark arrested at protest and charged with assault

The daughter of House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., was arrested during a protest in downtown Boston on Saturday and charged with assault after a police officer was injured.

Clark tweeted Sunday: “I love Riley, and this is a very difficult time in the cycle of joy and pain in parenting. This will be evaluated by the legal system, and I am confident in that process.”

Boston police alleged in a statement that officers observed Riley Clark, 23, defacing a monument with spray paint with the words “NO COP CITY” and “ACAB.”

During the arrest, “a group of about 20 protesters began to surround officers while screaming profanities through megaphones on the public street causing traffic to come to a standstill,” the statement said. An officer was hit in the face and was seen bleeding from the nose and mouth, police said.

Clark’s daughter was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, destruction or injury of personal property, damage of property by graffiti or tagging and resisting arrest and is expected to be arraigned in Boston Municipal Court, police said.

Clark has publicly expressed concern for her daughter, who she says identifies as nonbinary, in light of recent incidents of bigotry against the transgender community.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com