‘RIOTOUS BEHAVIOR’

Arizona Police Fire Tear Gas at Abortion-Rights Protesters After ‘Multiple Warnings’

The Department of Public Safety says some in the crowd were banging on the windows and doors of the state Senate.

Arizona police fired tear gas at a crowd protesting the U.S. Supreme Court decision to scuttle the abortion protections of Roe v. Wade—after demonstrators began banging on the doors and windows of the state Senate. Hundreds of people gathering at the state Capitol on Friday—a scene that played out in cities across the nation. Police justified its use of force on protestors exhibiting “riotous” behavior, listing seven memorials and public places that sustained damage. “Troopers exercised patience and application of tactics in Wesley Bolin Plaza as some people unwisely brought children to the protest turned unlawful assembly,” the Arizona Department of Public Safety said in a statement. “After multiple warnings, and notifications of trespass and unlawful assembly, state troopers deployed gas and strategically moved to clear the plaza.” Arizona has two laws on the book making abortion illegal that could take effect as a result of the high court decision.