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Retreat or Deploy? Police Try to Balance Protest Response

Associated Press

   LOS ANGELES - On two straight nights of unruly protests against police
   brutality, officers retreated from their posts in some American cities,
   while in others, they deployed batons, flash-bang grenades and tear gas
   to quell the unrest.

   The wide range of responses exacerbated tensions with the protesters in
   several locations and brought global attention to the tactics that
   American police use during riots as they try to find a balance between
   keeping the peace and protecting the safety of officers and the public.

   The protests came in the wake of George Floyd's death in Minneapolis
   after a white police officer pressed a knee into the 46-year-old black
   man's neck for more than eight minutes on Memorial Day. Floyd was
   handcuffed as Officer Derek Chauvin pushed his face into the pavement
   amid his pleas for help.

   Tensions rose throughout the week and reached a crescendo Friday night
   as protests erupted in cities across America. On their smart phones,
   social media feeds and TVs, viewers saw the extremes in tactics play
   out all through the night Thursday and Friday, even as the majority of
   cops nationwide tried to keep the peace without retreating or shoving
   people to the ground.

   In Minneapolis, leaders decided to evacuate a police precinct Thursday
   and surrender it to protesters who set it on fire. Protesters also
   broke into the police headquarters Friday in Portland, Oregon, and
   ignited a fire.

   In New York, officers used batons and shoved protesters down as they
   took people into custody and cleared the streets. One video showed on
   officer slam a woman to the ground as he walked past her in the street.
   In Louisville, a police officer fired what appeared to be pepper balls
   at a news crew, and a clip of the video amassed more than 8 million
   views on Twitter in less than six hours. Los Angeles police arrested
   more than 500 protesters on Friday night.

   Minneapolis police and Mayor Jacob Frey have been sharply criticized
   for the noticeably non-confrontational strategy Thursday in handling
   the protests after Floyd's death. Chauvin was arrested Friday and
   charged with murder.

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