:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/67001323/Screen_Shot_2020_06_30_at_12.55.08_PM.0.png)
Posted on 07/01/2020 5:17:52 AM PDT by Red Badger
Gunman shot driver, then hid weapon and continued to protest, Provo police say
PROVO — Two people were arrested Tuesday night in connection with the shooting of a motorist during a protest near the Provo Police Department the night before.
The victim, a 60-year-old Provo resident, remained hospitalized Tuesday but was “stable,” according to police. The man was not part of the protest or counterprotest that had been going on, but was just driving in the area, said Provo Police Sgt. Nisha King.
Tuesday night, King confirmed two people had been arrested in connection with the shooting. Jesse Taggart, 33, of Salt Lake City, was arrested for investigation of attempted aggravated murder, King said. He also faces allegations of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, rioting, threatening use of a weapon in a fight, criminal mischief and firing a weapon near a highway.
Samantha Darling, 27, of Ogden, was arrested for investigation of obstruction of justice and rioting.
Both were being booked into Utah County Jail.
“We definitely want to extend our appreciation and our thanks to all the citizens who provided evidence and testimony to our investigators,” King said. She also thanked Salt Lake and Ogden police for their assistance.
Police also confirmed Tuesday they were still looking for a second gunman who is believed to have brandished his weapon and pointed it at the driver but did not fire.
The victim was driving a white SUV on University Avenue and was attempting to turn onto Center Street when a group of protestors began “crowding around the vehicle. A male protester ran to the SUV on the passenger side, pointed a handgun at (the) driver and shot one round through the window,” according to a synopsis of the incident by Provo Deputy Police Chief John Geyerman.
The driver, who was struck by a bullet, “hit the gas trying to leave the situation,” Geyerman said.
Cellphone video recorded by witnesses shows the SUV appearing to push through the protesters, with at least one person falling to the ground.
As the SUV is speeding away, the gunman ran after the vehicle and fired a second round that went through the rear passenger window, according to police.
After the shooting, video shows the gunman then “conceals the firearm and continues to protest,” Geyerman said. “This same protester later approached another vehicle at 500 North and University Avenue, striking and breaking the window with the handgun.”
The driver of the SUV was taken to Utah Valley Hospital. Whether the shooting was somehow prompted by the man driving through the crowd or whether the man started driving through the crowd after he was shot are questions are questions police were investigating Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Provo Mayor Michelle Kaufusi denounced the violence.
“Peaceful protests are a fundamental right and often can become an important catalyst for positive change. Criminal acts and violence such as we saw last night in Provo were anything but peaceful and are unacceptable,” she said.
On Monday, a group calling itself Back to Blue planned to drive around the Provo Police Department and honk their horns to show support for law enforcement.
Another group planned a counterprotest at the same time and place. On Facebook, their event page was originally titled End Police Brutality but was later changed to Marching for Racial Equality. The Facebook pages list the event’s hosts as the groups Insurgence, Solidarity for Justice, Salt Lake Equal Rights Movement and the Salt Lake Antifascist Coalition.
“The growing movement against racist policing tactics and police killings has transformed the U.S. political terrain and brought much-needed attention to police brutality that is endemic in the U.S. At the heart of this movement is a rallying cry for justice for the victims of this violent system that disproportionately targets black, brown and indigenous peoples,” the Facebook event states.
About 100 people had gathered on Center Street about 6:30 p.m. Monday to protest. The event remained peaceful until about 8:40 p.m. when the shooting and a hit-and-run were reported.
On Tuesday, Provo police requested cellphone videos of the incident from witnesses.
“We are grateful for the photos and videos we’ve received and we are following all leads. If anyone has video or photos of the incident at Center Street and University Avenue, please contact detective Patterson at npatterson@provo.org,” police said in a statement.
Video shot by KSL-TV recorded what appears to be a man with his face concealed pointing a handgun at the SUV on the passenger side of the vehicle. The “popping” sound of shots being fired can be heard in the video.
Tuesday afternoon, pictures surfaced on social media of a second man holding a gun near the driver’s side window of the SUV and also holding a gun in the middle of the street as the victim drove away. As of Tuesday night, Provo police were still working to identify that man. King said investigators do not believe that man fired his gun.
About 50 minutes after the shooting, tensions remained high as cars continued to drive through the lines of protesters, prompting some to jump onto the vehicles and hit the windows. Demonstrators marched to the Provo Police Department and were met with officers in riot gear. Amid calls to disperse and threats of arrest from police, protesters chanted, “Hands up, don’t shoot.”
By 10 p.m., most of the crowd had dispersed after a woman with a megaphone, who was one of the organizers of the protest, told everyone to go home.
King Tuesday night emphasized the investigation into incidents during the protest is not over, saying “we do want to urge people with information of anyone who was involved in damage to other vehicles to still please contact detective Nick Patterson.”
Correction: A previous version incorrectly spelled Provo Deputy Police Chief John Geyerman’s last name as Guyerman.
In this video frame grab, a masked gunman can be seen pointing and firing at the driver of the white SUV during a protest in downtown Provo Monday night. Jay Hancock, Deseret News
VIDEO AT LINK.......................
“ pointed a handgun at (the) driver and shot one round through the window,”
Happening all over the country, sure sounds like someone is paying a bounty for the shooting of American citizens. Call the NYT tip line.
Cellphone video recorded by witnesses shows the SUV appearing to push through the protesters, with at least one person falling to the ground.
Am I bad for saying "Sorry it was only one?"
I remember seeing something about him fighting with the communist Kurds in Syria.
Wonder if that was true.
The Antifa and BLM would appear to be the paramilitary wing of the Democratic party - their Spartacists.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spartacist_uprising
You gotta wonder if the GOP has the balls to gin up a Freikorps in opposition:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freikorps#Post-World_War_I
Communists..............
Provo Police statement reads:
Numerous citizens provided video footage. A white SUV was driving South on University Avenue before pulling into the right turn lane in an attempt to turn onto Center Street. Several protestors began crowding around the vehicle. A male protestor ran to the SUV on the passenger side, pointed a handgun at driver and shot one round through the window.
The driver, who was struck by the bullet, hit the gas trying to leave the situation. The same protestor ran after the vehicle and shot a second round that went through the rear passenger window. The video then shows that the protestor conceals the firearm and continues to protest. This same protestor later approached another vehicle at 500 North and University Avenue striking and breaking the window with the handgun.
Just imagine the hysteria if a Trumpist had shot a rioter in self defense.
cars will be shooting back.........
This could get really “interesting.” ...........................
These are not “largely peaceful” protests but subversive and violent, seditious insurrections.
......”imagine the hysteria if a Trumpist had shot a rioter in self defense”.......
We’re already seeing that just with the Attorney couple who only had their guns out pointing at rioters in order to protect their property from the mob.
Lmfao.....uhm no.
These people have shown they can and will be violent and destructive......they are not ignorant of those within their groups who are violent and therefore accessories to what’s happening.
The best thing blacks couldd do, who are peaceful protestors, is go home and lets see who’s left standing.....those will be the enemies of us all.
However, the locals were altered, surrounded the busses and had everyone file off with their hands up.
The token handful of black folks were permitted to get back on and wait, while the rest of the trash were relieved of all their valuables and cell phones. These were bagged up minus the ID and tossed aboard the bus with the black folks, who were invited to divide it up as they saw fit. The bus was then ordered to drive back from whence they came.
The crowd was then told that was their part of the restitution for being born the wrong color. Now the town was going to collect the rest of the social justice.
But first, they needed to smash up the bus with the pipes their Soros sponsors had so thoughtfully provided. Once windows, doors and sides were sufficiently smashed in, they could use their surplus energy on the fixtures and upholstery, excepting the driver's seat and window because he needed to get them home safely.
That deed accomplished, they were invited to lay down their pipes. Oh, and sorry, no selfies because their cell phones departed on the other bus.
Next, every thug hire is forced to strip down. Females get to keep their underwear; males absolutely nothing; trannies get their choice. The better stuff goes in one pile to donate to the local homeless population. Everything else goes into another pile to set afire and keep them warm as they file aboard their smashed up bus for the trip back.
They could contemplate the social justice they just performed on the trip home. Anyone who objects to this treatment gets branded with a cattle iron and told they won't get better treatment if they should ever come near that town again.
The locals not participating come out from their hiding places and applauds as the battered up bus drives away with its cargo of human garbage. Then I awaken.
Whew! That’s quite the dream!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.