Downtown residents raise concerns over Olympia Police Department's use of tear gas
Some downtown Olympia residents were hit with tear gas in their homes July 24 when Olympia police tried to control and disperse a crowd officers say got violent.
Police say the decision to use tear gas is made thoughtfully, but the experience has left neighbors asking fundamental questions about police tactics.
A protest the night of July 24 was deemed a riot by Olympia police and ended in multiple arrests. The group of roughly 100 people had been marching and calling out chants focused on the presence of federal agents in Portland, when some from the group broke windows at the Helen Sommers Building at the Capitol Campus, home to Washington State Patrols headquarters. Initial estimates show it will cost a minimum of $50,000 for repairs to the Sommers building, according to Department of Enterprise Services spokesperson Linda Kent.
Officers gave the group orders to disperse, Lt. Paul Lower said, and continued to give such orders throughout the remainder of the affair.
Police say the group was throwing projectiles at officers, and that police used several types of crowd-control munitions to attempt to move or break up the group, including smoke canisters; flash bangs; stinger balls, which make loud noises while emitting rubber pellets; and pepper balls, which are small plastic pellets with pepper spray powder in them that officers shoot out of air rifles.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/downtown-residents-raise-concerns-over-olympia-police-department-s-use-of-tear-gas/ar-BB17tOq9?ocid=hplocalnews