Trump putting federal pressure on cities to stop unrest
Summary
But this time around, as on other recent days, the protesters targeted a fence around the U.S. District Courthouse where federal law enforcement officials were stationed — not the nearby Multnomah County Justice Center that houses the Portland police, who never ventured into this fray. Instead, it was a scenario familiar to many of the Portland police who took the night off — an hours long standoff that culminated with a dwindling band of protesters regrouping and marching back toward the federal building, where someone started a fire under the portico at around 1:34 a.m. Her lawsuit, filed July 17 in U.S. District Court, includes an affidavit from Mark Pettibone, a protester who alleges he was confronted by armed men dressed in camouflage and then detained in the federal courthouse without an explanation. Law enforcement officers were inside, and as they left, Gaines allegedly struck an agent three times, although the blows were deflected to prevent injury, according to the complaint that cited camera footage received by the Federal Protective Service. Gaines, 23, has never been convicted of a crime, and his previous employment included at a bakery in Bend, Oregon, and a ranch in Texas, according to a court document filed by his federal public defender, Bryan Francesconi, in an attempt to secure Gaines’ release.