3 Arrested In Clash Between Pro, Anti-Trump Protestors In SD

San Diego CA

10 January, 2021

2:55 PM

Description

SAN DIEGO, CA — Amid a handful of residual election protests that cropped up in California on Saturday, Pacific Beach was stirred by several confrontations between pro-Donald Trump demonstrators and anti-protestors. At least three were arrested after police declared an unlawful assembly for violence, officials said. The San Diego Police Department said it would release the total number of those arrested on Monday. San Diego police officers were pelted with eggs, bottles, rocks and rounds of pepper spray in the chaotic scene, police tweeted. It wasn't specified which protestors were aggressing officers. A pro-Trump "Patriot March" was planned for 2 p.m. but some anti-Trump and anti-fascist protestors reportedly arrived early, around 1 p.m. The two protests began near the entrance to the Crystal Pier at 4500 Oceanside Blvd., where several skirmishes between the two sides prompted police to step in. Cop line facing BLM at Pacific Beach San Diego #SanDiego pic.twitter.com/1z3EQ7BagV— T (@waterspider__) January 9, 2021 Videos on social media showed a heavy presence of police in the area before 2 p.m. as demonstrators chanted "USA! USA!" In another video posted online, a group of black-clad protesters, one displaying an "Antifascist Action" banner, could be heard chanting "racists go home." Police reportedly fired pepper balls at some in the crowd of about 100 Trump supporters and 100 counter-protesters as they clashed at the intersection of Mission Boulevard and Hornblend Street until a growing number of police officers on foot and on bikes arrived to separate them. After incidents of "violence" were directed at officers, the San Diego Police Department declared the demonstration an unlawful assembly at about 2:30 p.m. "Please clear the area and head away from the scene," police said from a helicopter loudspeaker. "Those who remain or return against this lawful order may be cited/arrested and risk exposure to chemical agents and less-lethal force applications," police tweeted. By 3:40 p.m. crowds from both sides began to disperse. Other protests reported in California unfolded in Beverly Hills, downtown Los Angeles and Walnut Creek, where demonstrators on both sides of the political divide reportedly hit the streets to protest. In Beverly Hills, a pro-Trump "Patriots Push Forward" rally drew dozens in Beverly Gardens Park to honor the life of Ashli Babbitt, the U.S. Air Force veteran who died while attempting to breach the U.S. Capitol with a crowd of others on Wednesday. Civil unrest persists in California just days after Twitter banned Trump from his account indefinitely less than a week after a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. The insurrection forced Capitol staff, members of congress, press, Vice President Mike Pence and senators to lock down and evacuate. READ MORE: 'Patriots Push Forward' Rally Draws A Crowd In Beverly HillsSan Diego Woman ID'd In Deadly Capitol Chaos: Reports The City News Service contributed to this report.