Whitney Curtis/Reuters
At least 32 people were arrested in St. Louis after protests against a former police officer’s acquittal in the 2011 shooting death of a black man turned violent late Friday. Protesters blocked highways, surrounded the mayor’s house, and threw bricks at police officers, leaving at least nine police officers injured, one of them seriously. Police deployed tear gas and pepper spray against demonstrators in a bid to regain control. “Many of the demonstrators were peaceful, however after dark, many agitators began to destroy property and assault police officers,” Acting Police Chief Lawrence O'Toole said early Saturday. Several buildings were damaged, including a public library and several restaurants. The chaos erupted after a judge found 36-year-old Jason Stockley not guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of 24-year-old Anthony Lamar Smith. Smith died after Stockley, then a police officer, shot him five times following a high-speed chase in 2011.