Protests-and Violence-Reach Kenosha Sunday

KENOSHA, WI (WLIP)–A peaceful protest became violent Sunday night as large crowds gathered to protest the death of an African-American Minnesota man while in police custody. George Floyd died while laying in the street with a police officer keeping his knee on his neck.

The incident was caught on camera and sparked protests-and looting-in many cities across the country. That protest-and some of the violence-made its way to Kenosha on Sunday.

The peaceful part of the protest was quite large, with some estimates saying that around 1-thousand people participated by the end of the day. It moved through much of the central part of the city, beginning at Reuther High School.

Towards evening there were multiple reports of shots fired and other acts of violence-especially towards officers and their squad cars. Soon’s Sushi Cafe on 54th Street across from Columbus Park suffered damage when someone sent a Molotov Cocktail through a window, causing a fire.

By nightfall, county and city officials had declared an emergency curfew. There’s no word yet on the number of arrests made or a complete accounting of the damage sustained.

We’ll have more details as they become available.