Hundreds of protesters marched peacefully through downtown Denver Thursday night to demand justice for the victims of police killings.
Hundreds of miles away in Dallas, new horror erupted at a similar protest as snipers shot 14 people -- 12 police officers and two civilians. Five of the officers, four of them from the Dallas Police Department and one from the transit authority, have died.
One suspect died when a police robot detonated an explosive and three suspects reportedly are in custody Friday morning.
Officials in Dallas said the suspect who later died told police he wanted to kill police officers, especially white police officers, but he said he was not affiliated with any group.
The Dallas Morning News has complete coverage of this story, which is still developing.
This is their summary of what we know at this time:
- Four Dallas police officers and one DART officer were killed.
- Seven officers and two civilians were wounded.
- One suspect exchanged fire with police and was killed when a police robot detonated an explosive in a parking garage at El Centro College.
- Three people were said to be in custody and not cooperating with authorities.
- Primary and secondary sweeps for explosives were completed early Friday. None were found.
In Denver, the protest started out early in the evening, when events in Dallas were similarly peaceful, with some 150 people on the 16th Street Mall. It picked up followers until it doubled in size as they marched down the Mall to the Millennium Bridge and then back to the Capitol.
Members of Black Lives Matter 5280 had started a 135-hour vigil in Civic Center Park earlier in the afternoon and asked white allies to leave that space for people of color.
The marchers represented a more mixed group who came out to show solidarity.
The mood changed and became more tense as news of Dallas broke. Police in riot gear kept their distance as Lincoln Street filled with people in front of the Capitol building. Chants echoed through the downtown.
Tay Anderson, student body president of Manual High School, who was leading the protest, told the crowd that what happened in Dallas will not happen in Denver.
One man -- a white man -- booed this sentiment.
A spokesman for the department said there were no arrests made during the protest.
Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and the Denver Police Department both tweeted their condolences to Dallas.
Denver police also retweeted this sentiment, which is all we can really say right now.
Gov. John Hickenlooper has ordered flags lowered to half-staff.
