Protests in St. Louis, Missouri, turned violent late on Friday, Sept. 15, after a white police officer was acquitted of shooting a black man dead in 2011.
Nine city officers and a state trooper were injured at the rally, that was initially peaceful, and 23 people were arrested, according to acting Police Commissioner Lawrence O'Toole.
One officer sustained a serious injury while two were injured by bricks, authorities said.
“Tear gas was deployed because agitators became violent toward officers and destroyed property at Kingshighway & Waterman” St. Louis Police Department said in a tweet.
“Officers did deploy pepper balls as a less-than-lethal option after agitators continued to assault officers with objects and destroy property,” O'Toole said.
“Reports of bricks thrown at police. That’s not protest. That’s a crime,” tweeted Republican Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens.
The protests were sparked after a white St. Louis police officer, Jason Stockley was found not guilty of shooting dead a black suspect, Anthony Lamar Smith in a car chase that happened in 2011. Smith was suspected of dealing drugs.
The verdict rings memories of the shooting of a black suspect in nearby Ferguson three years ago. White officer Darren Wilson shot dead the black teenager Michael Brown on Aug. 9, 2014. It provoked protests and a nationwide debate after a grand jury cleared the officer.
