One man was reported killed and another wounded in an overnight shooting Friday in Seattle’s Capitol Hill protest zone.
Seattle police confirmed in a statement that the shooting took place at 10th Avenue and East Pine, but did not provide further details.
It was not clear whether any suspects were in custody following the incident in what’s alternatively known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) and the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP).
A livestream from the area following the shooting featured an announcement of the victim’s death to a group of people at the protest camp.
“The gentleman that got shot did pass,” a woman is heard announcing in the video. “For those of you that are unaware, he is gone, he is no longer with us.”
There were reports of people saying they heard three to six gunshots from the area at around 2:20 a.m., according to the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog.
The report noted that the second victim had suffered a gunshot wound to the arm and chest. Responding officers encountered “hostile crowds,” according to the report.
“We got medics going in different directions here,” a Converge Media reporter is heard saying at around the 15-minute mark of a livestream video of the aftermath of the incident, which showed a crowd of people and what appears to be a medic sprinting away from the gathering.
Video from a location said to be at 13th Avenue and Pine shows people removing a barrier as sirens are heard in the background.
The Facebook Page for Black Lives Matter Seattle Original posted the following statement about the shooting: “There was a shooting at chop/Chaz tonight. At least 2 gunshots fired. We are still finding out information but At least one person is dead and one is at Harborview Medical center. A black man is dead and white person is in critical condition.”
“We are sorry for the person killed tonight and hope the other person makes a full recovery,” the organization added.
The zone was first occupied on June 8.
Protesters inside have compiled an ever-changing list of demands in a post on Medium, including the abolition of the city’s police department and the attached criminal justice apparatus, to reparations for victims of police brutality, among other items.
The zone has prompted President Donald Trump to call on Seattle’s mayor and Washington’s governor, both of whom are Democrats, to “take back” the city. Trump has described those who took over the area as “domestic terrorists.”
From The Epoch Times
