Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said police arrested more than 40 protesters Monday night during protests sparked by a Missouri grand jury’s decision to not indict Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson in the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.
Demonstrators threw rocks and bottles at Oakland police to provoke them. The demonstrators also broke into businesses in a four-block area of downtown, broke windows, painted graffiti and set garbage cans on fire, according the mayor’s office.
At 20th and Webster, demonstrators broke the windows of the Chase bank. Police arrested one person for vandalizing a police car. Police arrested others who blocked traffic on Interstate Highway 580.
City officials will address the media later today on the protests. Monday night about 1,000 protesters gathered in downtown Oakland to demonstrate against the lack of an indictment. A crowd entered I-580 at MacArthur Boulevard, forcing the California Highway Patrol to alert the public of a traffic disruption at 8:36 p.m.
By about 9 p.m. traffic was moving in the eastbound lanes and police were clearing the protesters from the westbound lanes. The highway reopened about 11 p.m. Protesters chanted slogans such as:
“The whole damn system is guilty as hell. Indict, convict and send the killer cop to jail.”
“Hands up, don’t shoot,” and “Black lives matter.” St. Louis County prosecutor Robert McCulloch announced that jurors decided there was no probable cause to charge Wilson after interviewing other officers, reviewing evidence and reviewing witness accounts.
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