Police take cover behind a vehicle outside a parking garage in downtown Dallas early Friday, July 8, 2016. (AP Photo)
Tuesday, July 5:
Outside a Louisiana convenience store, a black Baton Rouge man, 37-year-ol Alton Sterling, was shot and killed by police. Police say they were called to the store Tuesday after an anonymous caller said Sterling had threatened someone with a gun, where they had some type of altercation with the man and one officer fatally shot him around 12:35 am.
A video that purported to show the killing of 37-year-old Alton Sterling further fueled public anger about the shooting by Wednesday, prompting hundreds to protest. In a cellphone video taken by a community activist and posted online, two officers had Sterling pinned to the ground, and gunfire erupted moments after someone yelled, “He’s got a gun! Gun!”
Dallas cops ‘ambushed’ by snipers during protests: See photos
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards says the cellphone video of the fatal police shooting of a black man in Baton Rouge is “disturbing to say the least.” The governor said he understood that protesters were angry over the shooting and called for calm.
Wednesday, July 6:
A vigil for Alton Sterling, who was killed early Tuesday, met outside the store Wednesday. There were prayers, songs, a balloon release in Sterling’s memory and calls for justice. Many of those gathered held signs demanding action as participants chanted “Black Lives Matter.”
At one point during the vigil, protesters marched down a busy street near the site of the shooting, blocking traffic.
Little to no police presence was seen near the peaceful gathering but police were nearby if needed.
Protesters demonstrate outside the Triple S Food Mart where Alton Sterling was shot dead by police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Reuters)
Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards says peaceful demonstrations after a police shooting death are a “testament to the people of Baton Rouge.”
Thursday, July 7:
Philando Castile was fatally shot by a police officer in Falcon Heights during a traffic stop. His girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, said Castile, 32, was shot in front of her and her 4-year-old daughter after police pulled their car over, citing a broken tail light.
Reynolds streamed the gruesome aftermath of the slaying live on Facebook, telling a worldwide audience that her companion had been shot “for no apparent reason” while reaching for his wallet. Reynolds and relatives say he wasn’t tended to until paramedics arrived more than 10 minutes later. The Facebook footage shows Castile motionless inside the car for several minutes.
- Family of slain Louisiana man denounces Dallas police deaths
- Alton Sterling’s family doesn’t want death to be ‘race thing’
- Thousands take to streets across US to protest police violence
- Dallas Shooting: Family of slain Louisiana man expresses grief over police deaths
- Alton Sterling shooting: Community remembers Louisiana man known as ‘Big Boy’
- Louisiana police shooting: Protests erupt as community wants federal investigation into black man’s death
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About 200 people are gathered outside the Minnesota Governor’s Residence in St. Paul to protest, following which Governor Mark Dayton started pressing the Justice Department to open its second investigation of the week into the death of a black man at the hands of police.
Reynolds told reporters Thursday that Philando Castile did “nothing but what the police officer asked of us, which was to put your hands in the air and get your license and registration.” An autopsy later confirmed that Castile was died of multiple gunshot wounds.
President Barack Obama also reacted to the pair of controversial deaths in a Facebook post Thursday. He says all Americans should be “deeply troubled.” Later, addressing the shootings, Obama said statistics show disparities about how African-Americans and Hispanics are treated by police and that America must say “we’re better than this.
Read: What Obama said about shootings of black men
Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Minnesota governor’s official residence to protest the police shooting of a black man. The crowd swelled to more than 1,000 for a time as people marched from a vigil Thursday evening for Philando Castile.
Dallas police respond after shots were fired during a protest over recent fatal shootings by police in Louisiana and Minnesota, Thursday, July 7, 2016, in Dallas. (AP Photo)
Gunfire broke out around 8:45 p.m, Thursday. Videos showed protesters marching along a street in downtown when the shots erupted and the crowd scattered, seeking cover.
Dallas police said five officers have died after at least two snipers opened fire during protests downtown Thursday night. Six other officers were wounded.
Friday, July 8:
Dallas Police said that they had taken three people under custody, including one female with connection to the shooting that killed five officers.
The police were in a standoff with a fourth suspect as they engaged in gun battle at a garage, who is reportedly dead.
Declaring it an “active crime scene” Dallas Police Chief David Brown said that authorities will likely ask some people to stay away from downtown Dallas on Friday.
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