Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland declared a local State of Emergency Sunday night after violence broke out in that city following what the Murfreesboro Police Department’s Facebook page described as a peaceful assembly.
The order went into effect at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the MPD’s Facebook page.
“MPD deployed tear gas at the intersection of East Main and Middle Tenn. Boulevard. A crowd of protesters was blocking the intersection and was almost hit by traffic,” the MPD’s Facebook page said in a separate post.
“An armored vehicle was vandalized, a brick thrown through window of Whiskey Dix on Square. Curfew is in effect.”
In a press release, McFarland (pictured above) said the following:
As Mayor, I recognize and fully support the right of people to peacefully assemble and demonstrate.
The City is committed to securing and protecting the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment. At the same time, others have engaged in unlawful activities that endanger peace and public safety. Safeguarding the lives of citizens, preventing significant damage to property, and protecting our law enforcement officers and emergency service providers is the reason I am declaring this local emergency.
Joe Spears at the Murfreesboro-based Daily News Journal posted a video on his Twitter feed of an officer in an armored vehicle throwing tear gas at protestors yelling at them.
From earlier: An officer in an armored vehicle throws tear gas at protestors yelling at them. #Murfreesboro pic.twitter.com/JQX7qNryDs
— Joe Spears (@joe_spears7) June 1, 2020
WKRN reporter Josh Breslow reported on his Twitter Sunday night that Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has authorized the use of National Guard and the Tennessee Highway Patrol in Murfreesboro to help in “restoring order for the safety of our citizens.”
Breslow quoted Lee as saying protests there “are no longer peaceful demonstrations but have escalated to overt threats to public safety and property.”
McFarland issued the order pursuant to special emergency powers granted to local governments pursuant to state law. The order aids enforcement of the curfew through requests for mutual aid from other jurisdictions and by activating certain emergency-response provisions of the city code, the press release said.
As The Tennessee Star reported, protesters held an event in Nashville Saturday to protest the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Later in the day, protestors resorted to violence — by trashing the Metro Courthouse and, later, parts of downtown Broadway.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
Riot???? What riot??This is in your headline. WHAT RIOT?? There was NO riot in Murfreesboro.