The American Civil Liberties Union files lawsuit against the Trump administration, alleging officials violated the civil rights of protesters forcefully removed from a park by police using chemical agents before the president walked to a nearby church.
Police begin to clear demonstrators gather as they protest the death of George Floyd, Monday, June 1, 2020, near the White House in Washington. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers.
The suit argues that Trump, Barr and other officials “unlawfully conspired to violate” the protesters’ rights when clearing Lafayette Park on Monday. Law enforcement officers aggressively forced the protesters back, firing smoke bombs and pepper balls into the crowd to disperse them from the park.The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the group Black Lives Matter D.C. and individual protesters who were present.
“I don’t necessarily view that as a political act. I think it was entirely appropriate for him to do,” Barr said. The Park Police and Secret Service have had dozens of officers out in riot gear for the last few nights, in addition to the Metropolitan Police Department. U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other Homeland Security agencies were also dispatched.
Some of the officers appeared to be assigned to Bureau of Prisons special response teams, which were dispatched to Washington and Miami. Some of those officers have said they were told to say only that they work for the federal government or the Department of Justice.
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