On that fateful Sunday afternoon, hundreds of left-wing protesters marched along Ocean Boulevard to the iconic Santa Monica Pier in a “Black Lives Matter” protest.
As police patrolled the demonstration, looters and rioters arrived at the Santa Monica Place mall, one block inland. They rampaged through the stores, smashing windows and stealing whatever they could carry. In the adjacent streets of downtown Santa Monica, masked hangs would smash store windows with skateboards and other blunt objects, allowing looters inside. One store was spared, temporarily, because an armed volunteer turned away would-be looters. When he left, they returned.
Vandals tagged buildings — including the courthouse and the public library — with anti-police graffiti.
There were roughly 400 arrests that day, but no charges were pressed.
Breitbart News visited the area the morning after the riots, and found shocked residents cleaning up the damage:
Many stores in downtown Santa Monica, devastated by the coronavirus shutdowns, remain boarded up today.
In the immediate aftermath, Chief Renaud wrote an open letter to the community:…
Continue Reading