Douglas County: Three reports filed regarding BLM protest, no arrests made to date
Submitted by Kelsey Penrose on Tue, 08/11/2020 - 10:39am
The Black Lives Matter protest in Douglas County made national headlines after there were several videos filmed of verbal threats, racist taunts, and in at least one case a physical assault.
Douglas County issued an update and correction to their previous release, which stated that no reports had been filed regarding alleged assaults that occurred during the protest.
"The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office would like to issue a correction to the statement below," the report states. "One police report was filed on August 8, 2020 in regards to the protest. Three police reports have been filed as of August 11, 2020. One report was filed on August 8, 2020 by a witness to a battery; the second report was a possible suicidal person at the protest; the third was filed on August 11, 2020 and was a battery report alleging had the individual had been spit on at the Old Courthouse. The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is still receiving information on events which occurred during the time of the protest."
The original statement is as follows:
The planned Black Lives Matter (BLM) protest and counter protest began at the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center (JLEC) located at 1038 Buckeye Road in Minden NV at 9:00 am. The Sheriff’s Office estimates the combined size of the groups was between 750 and 1,000 protestors. Protests concluded at 6:00 p.m. BLM organizers originally planned the protests to occur between 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. according to their Facebook Page.
Protesters blocked traffic in intervals on US Highway 395 and residential streets in the Town of Minden. A handful of small arguments broke out between BLM protestors and counter protestors during the demonstrations. No active police reports have been filed at this time in regards to any altercations occurring during the protest.
Protestors gathered briefly at the Law Enforcement Center and marched to and from various locations around the Town of Minden including Highway 395 between 6th street (Buckeye) and 10th Street, Minden Park, and the Historic Courthouse. Law enforcement units strategically staged around town and mounted and foot patrols monitored the progress of protestors throughout the day to ensure the safety of residents and visitors. At the protest were no arrests, no citations, and no injuries reported.
“We took every precaution to ensure the safety of participants and we are grateful to the assisting agencies who provided resources,” said Sheriff Dan Coverley.
One battery was filmed live via Carson Now's Facebook page, which can be viewed below:
What isn't apparent in the video is that the BLM protester who was punched in the face had thrown a plastic water bottle at the upper right hand side of the vehicle's windshield after it continued to slowly drive through protesters. Explicit language warning.
The full 14 minute long video with events before and after the battery can be viewed by following this link.
