‘No one’s getting a free ride,’ Richland sheriff warns after protests turn violent
As Columbia-area law enforcement geared up for a third day of protests across the city, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said he welcomed peaceful ralliers, but warned those who are violent that police aren’t going away.
Lott, who attended protests Saturday and Sunday said the rallies in downtown Columbia started peacefully, but an organized group of people pushed the events to violence.
“What we saw there wasn’t a crowd there to protest what happened in Minneapolis,” Lott said. “It was a crowd there to do a couple things. One, to attack the police, and to burn down the Columbia Police Department and other things.”
Law enforcement clashed with protesters, who hit the street after the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd, across downtown Columbia over the weekend. Floyd died after a police officer knelt on his neck. The incident was captured in video.
Lott said local law enforcement were bearing the brunt of protesters’ anger at the Minneapolis police.
“What happened in Minneapolis, that’s not Richland County,” Lott said. “We shouldn’t be held accountable for what someone has done in Minneapolis.”
“What that cop did, all four of those cops did, was awful,” he added.
The protests started peacefully Saturday with a rally at the S.C. State House, but after some marched to the Columbia Police Department headquarters things turned violent. The night ended with windows being smashed across the Vista, police cars being set on fire, more than a dozen arrests and more than a dozen officers injured.
On Sunday, protesters hit the streets again, and were met by officers, who fired rubber bullets, bean bags and tear gas. Lott said a group of about 75 protesters tried to break into the back of the Columbia Police Department headquarters.
Lott emphasized that he himself had marched with protesters to the State House and later to Columbia police headquarters without incident, even holding a McDonald’s cup because he “didn’t feel like I needed both hands because someone was going to hit me.”
That changed when people began throwing items, injuring some officers. Lott said the use of tear gas and “less-than-lethal” firearms were justified by officers defending themselves, and such tactics have been shown to successfully disperse unruly crowds.
He said the violent tactics of some protesters were part of an organized effort to break the law, attack police and destroy property using “good people” protesting as cover. He declined to say who was organizing those efforts or how, but pointed to the arrests of five individuals over the weekend who had traveled to South Carolina from out of state.
Officers from Columbia, Camden, West Columbia, Cayce, Richland County, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the S.C. Law Enforcement Division and the state Highway Patrol responded to the riots over the weekend.
Law enforcement officials have said guns were fired at police over the weekend. A shooting incident Saturday is still under investigation, Lott said.
One person was arrested with a gun and seventy rounds of ammo. Lott showed a photo of the gun, which had an expanded clip that could hold up to 30 rounds.
“What does that have to do with a peaceful protest?” Lott asked. “What does that have to do with changing the system if the system is broke?”
The sheriff warned that those who participated in the vandalism and who threw bricks or other projectiles would be found and charged.
”I guarantee you, anyone who’s done something ... there’s lot of pictures out there,” Lott said. “Everyone’s going to be held accountable. No one’s getting a free ride over this.”
This story was originally published June 1, 2020 at 1:25 PM.
