Protests resume after 120 arrests in St. Louis unrest

ST. LOUIS -- Protesters chanting "free our people" gathered outside the jail in downtown St. Louis on Monday night to show solidarity with those who remain behind bars.

Police said more than 120 people were arrested during Sunday's protests. Demonstrators outside the jail criticized authorities for keeping some of those arrested in jail nearly 24 hours after they were taken into custody. One organizer said over a megaphone the protesters were prepared to "occupy" the facility.

Monday was the fourth day of protests over the acquittal of a white former police officer in the killing of a black suspect. In the morning, a racially mixed crowd of demonstrators marched through downtown.

The latest action follows three days of peaceful protests and three nights of vandalism and unrest in the city that's been rocked since Friday, when a judge announced he found Jason Stockley not guilty in the 2011 death of Anthony Lamar Smith.

Smith's mother, Anne Smith, was among those gathered Monday outside the downtown jail.

Hundreds of riot police mobilized downtown late Sunday, arresting more than 120 people and seizing weapons amid reports of property damage and vandalism. The arrests came after demonstrators ignored orders to disperse, police said.

"I'm proud to tell you the city of St. Louis is safe, and the police owned tonight," interim police chief Lawrence O'Toole said at a news conference early Monday.

Protesters marched through St. Louis' posh Central West End and the trendy Delmar Loop area of nearby University City on Friday and Saturday. Protesters also marched through two shopping malls in a wealthy area of St. Louis County.

On Sunday, more than 1,000 people had gathered at police headquarters and then marched without trouble through downtown St. Louis. By nightfall, most had gone home.

But the 100 or so people who remained grew agitated as they marched back toward downtown. Along the way, they knocked over planters, broke windows at a few shops and hotels, and scattered plastic chairs at an outdoor venue.

According to police, the demonstrators sprayed bottles with an unknown substance on officers. One officer suffered a leg injury and was taken to a hospital. His condition wasn't known.

Soon afterward, buses brought in additional officers in riot gear, and police scoured downtown deep into the night, making arrests and seizing at least five weapons, according to O'Toole.

Later, officers in riot gear gathered alongside a city boulevard, chanting, "whose street, our street" -- a common refrain used by the protesters -- after clearing the street of demonstrators and onlookers.

"We're in control. This is our city, and we're going to protect it," O'Toole said.

Mayor Lyda Krewson said at the same Monday news conference "the days have been calm and the nights have been destructive," and "destruction cannot be tolerated."

Early Monday, more than 150 protesters marched arm-in-arm, some carrying signs, to city hall. Police turned traffic away as the marchers blocked a busy St. Louis street during the rush hour crush.

Once at city hall, they found their voices, chanting: "I know that we will win."

The protesters then marched four blocks to a city court building, where they chanted again, then dispersed. Another protest was scheduled for Monday night in University City.

Also Monday, high school students in at least two suburban districts protested the Stockley ruling.

In Kirkwood, about 100 students walked out and held a brief rally, while 250 students in Webster Groves staged what school officials described as a peaceful demonstration.

The recent St. Louis protests follow a pattern seen since the August 2014 killing of Michael Brown in nearby Ferguson: The majority of demonstrators, though angry, are law-abiding.

But as the night wears on, a subsection emerges, a different crowd more willing to confront police, sometimes to the point of clashes.

Protest organizer Anthony Bell said he understands why some act out: While change can come through peaceful protests, such as those led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., years of oppression has caused some to turn violent.

"I do not say the (unruly) demonstrators are wrong, but I believe peaceful demonstrations are the best," Bell said.