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PHOTOS: Black Lives Matter protests turn chaotic in Reno, Las Vegas

The Nevada Independent Staff
The Nevada Independent Staff
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What started out as peaceful Black Lives Matter protests in Reno and Las Vegas took a chaotic turn Saturday night, with demonstrators smashing out the windows of Reno City Hall, facing off with police on the streets of downtown Las Vegas and prompting Gov. Steve Sisolak to deploy the National Guard to protect public property. 

Saturday marked the second day of large demonstrations in Nevada following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. Protests Friday led to some 80 arrests in Las Vegas and injuries to 12 police officers.

Scenes of protesters breaking windows with baseball bats and setting fires inside Reno City Hall Saturday afternoon drew an immediate call by local leaders for a city-wide and later Washoe County-wide curfew, with Sisolak eventually calling in the state’s National Guard late Saturday to assist local law enforcement.

“I know our communities are reeling from the injustice and heartbreak,” Sisolak said in a tweet. “As I said today, we respect and defend the right to protest, but we need people to express themselves peacefully.”

But the fracas continued well into the night on Saturday, with videos on social media showing protesters setting a vehicle ablaze, breaking windows at small businesses and breaking into an ATM in Reno. 

Police responded by deploying tear gas and shooting rubber bullets to clear protesters from the area .

In a downtown Las Vegas crowd estimated to number 1,500 to 2,000, protesters shouted at officers lined up to form a barrier and threw water bottles, while other demonstrators urged the throwing to stop. Officers rushed the crowd at times, pinning people to the ground and arresting them.

Here’s a look at the protests around the state on Saturday:

Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Reno on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (David Calvert/The Nevada Independent)
A police helicopter hovers above a Black Lives Matter demonstration at the Container Park in Downtown Las Vegas on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (Daniel Clark/The Nevada Independent)
Mauricia Watkins tells Black Lives Matter demonstrators that "Your phone is your only advocate." during a protest at the Container Park in Downtown Las Vegas on Saturday, May 30, 2020. (Daniel Clark/The Nevada Independent)
Woman at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. (Daniel Clark/The Nevada Independent)
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Police officers at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Protesters face off with police at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
A police officer at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Police officers at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
A police officer takes down a protester at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
A protester on the ground at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
A man with a Department of Homeland Security badge at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Police officers at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Sherrie Robin Wells is taken into custody after police cleared an area of protesters in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Police take Sherrie Robin Wells into custody after they cleared an area of protesters in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
People in police custody at a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
The aftermath of a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
Police officers in the aftermath of a Black Lives Matter protest in Downtown Las Vegas on May 30, 2020. Photo by Daniel Clark.
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