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- Beverly Hills police declared unlawful assembly at a pro-Trump rally on Saturday following a “violent fight” between a counter-protester and a rally-goer, police said.
- Supporters of the “USA Freedom Rally” which supports “#Trump2020, the police, and opening our cities, businesses and schools,” according to its Facebook page, rallied on the streets of Beverly hills Saturday.
- Communities across the country are preparing for potential violence related to the election.
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Beverly Hills police declared unlawful assembly at a crowded pro-Trump rally after demonstrators and counter-protesters clashed on Saturday.
Supporters of the “USA Freedom Rally” took to the streets of Beverly Hills in support of “#Trump2020, the police, and opening our cities, businesses and schools,” according to a Facebook post.
A spokesperson for Beverly Hills police told Insider in an emailed statement that when counter-protesters marched to the USA Freedom Rally, a counter-protester and pro-Trump protester clashed, which led local authorities to declare an unlawful assembly at around 2:40 p.m. local time Saturday afternoon.
“Approximately 40 counter protestors did assemble at Roxbury Park and then march to the USA Freedom Rally,” Beverly Hills police Lt. Max Subin told Insider in a statement. “The counter protestor (unknown name) got into a violent fight with a pro Trump protestor. It was at the point that an unlawful assembly was declared by the Incident Commander and the counter protestors did leave the area and march back to Roxbury Park.”
Police told Insider that no arrests were made from the fight or the protest.
—John A. Moreno (@morenojohn) October 31, 2020
Hundreds of pro-Trump protesters were present at the rally, according to the LA Times. One man who was selling pro-Trump merchandise told the LA Times he made around $2,000 in a matter of hours.
CBS Los Angeles reported the rally was "otherwise peaceful," and multiple authorities including local police, private security guards, and the Santa Paula SWAT team were present on-site.
Drawing near the election, communities are preparing for potential violence related to the election. Business Insider's Thomas Pallini previously reported shops are putting up window glass and preparing other gear for potential unrest. In October, Michigan banned the open carry of guns on Election Day. Social media platforms are also preparing to mitigate conflict: Facebook is reportedly preparing measures such as slowing the spread of viral content on its platform to prepare for potential election-related unrest.
- Read more:
- Democrats say they fear election-week chaos, including vote-counting delays and violence in the streets
- Riot Glass, salt plows, and guns: How corporate America is getting ready for potential civil unrest after the election
- Walmart is removing guns from its stores ahead of Election Day, but this isn't the first time the company has done so to protect its workers amid 'civil unrest'
- Facebook is taking specific measures to slow the 'spread of viral content' in anticipation of possible unrest on Election day, report says