KGO-TV(BERKELEY, Calif.) — At least 15 people were arrested after supporters and opponents of President Trump clashed in Berkeley, California.
According to Berkeley Police Officer Byron White, the rally started on Saturday with an event called “Patriots Day,” created online by pro-Trump demonstrators. The event at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park was met by anti-Trump protesters, and soon violence began to break out.
Fireworks were set off in the park and major brawls erupted, with some of the fighting moving to an adjacent street. According to police, several people suffered minor injuries.
There were reports of different gases, but police said they believe it was pepper spray set off by demonstrators clashing in the street.
“A member of the crowd released some kind of gas into the air and that gas…one of our officers was exposed to it and the officers have since put on gas masks to protect themselves,” White said. “That officer has been treated and released at the scene.”
Police said they seized several prohibited items from the protesters including, flagpoles, signs attached to poles, a knife, and a stun gun, according to ABC station KGO-TV.
In March, Berkeley experienced similar brawls after several of the same groups planned rallies to protest and counterprotest. KGO-TV reports 10 people were arrested then and police are still trying to identify suspects.
Copyright © 2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.