‘They have no shame’: Boise protesters critical of police at rally over fatal shooting
A protest organized by Black Lives Matter Boise at Boise City Hall on Friday evening drew between 75 and 100 people upset about a police shooting that left a Nampa man dead last weekend.
The protesters — mostly young and a large number of them white — held signs, squeaked pink toy pigs and chanted, “Say his name, Payton Wasson.” Many expressed anger about the fatal shooting and asserted that it fits into a larger pattern of police misconduct.
Wasson, 22, was shot in the head early last Saturday morning near Idaho and 5th streets downtown after police said he fled from a vehicle during a drug investigation and refused commands to stop.
On Friday afternoon, the Boise Police Department said Officer Chance Feldner shot Wasson, who they said had been running with a firearm in his hand. Police said they recovered a gun next to Wasson, who was treated at the scene and then rushed to the hospital. He died Sunday at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center.
At a microphone Friday evening, one protester said that “Payton was murdered by police,” and then started a “Payton Wasson deserved to live” chant. He declined to give his name to the Idaho Statesman.
“They have no remorse. They have no shame. They’ll call it a tragedy while making excuses for their officers’ behavior,” said Ty Werenka, who has alleged that he was assaulted and falsely arrested by police while filming them last year.
When he mentioned Feldner, protesters booed.
Across Capitol Boulevard, about a half-dozen counterprotesters gathered with Thin Blue Line flags, meant to show support for law enforcement. The Idaho Liberty Dogs, a far-right group, had planned a protest to “show the Boise PD that the good people of Treasure Valley are behind them 100%,” according to its Facebook page.
The counterprotesters declined to comment Friday night.
People on either side of the street shouted at each other some, but the rally remained peaceful. At one point, police intervened when a BLM protester approached the other group and close-quarter shouting ensued.
Wasson’s family was not involved in planning the protest, Wasson’s aunt, Kylee James, told the Statesman in a phone interview Thursday. “We appreciate it. We just don’t even know what’s happening,” she said.
In a follow-up text, James said family members and friends of Wasson would attend Friday night. Two people who identified themselves as cousins were present.
“Generally, he was a good guy. He just always hung out with the wrong crowd, per se,” cousin Paige Travis told the Statesman.
Some attendees said they came because of concern about what they labeled systemic policing issues.
“I think Payton’s murder is just one myopic example of the police state we live in and the brutality working-class people face every day,” Zeth Roark, 22, told the Statesman.
Julian Workman, 20, said: “I don’t support the system of police as a whole even without the context of this murder. But the context of this murder, it shows how corrupted our police system is.”
Skip Banach, 74, said he’s a retired San Diego police officer who has a personal connection to this kind of case. His son, Jeremy Banach, was killed last year by Star police. He was shot after he pointed a gun at them, according to previous Statesman reporting on body camera footage from that incident.
Banach said his son was walking away when he was killed.
“Police cannot police themselves,” he said. He said he wants citizen review boards established in Idaho to hold police accountable.
After gathering at City Hall, protesters marched to 5th and Main streets, near the site where Wasson was killed. They then walked back to City Hall in the middle of Idaho Street, still chanting, “Say his name, Payton Wasson.”
