PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The Latest on competing rallies in Portland following fatal stabbings (all times local):
6:44 p.m.
Police say 14 people have been arrested and a number of weapons seized following a day of demonstrations and counter protests in downtown Portland.
Tensions at times ran high during competing pro-President Donald Trump free speech rally and an anti-hate rally at City Hall across the street. But those events have ended, and police say crowds have largely dispersed.
Police at one point detained dozens of demonstrators and others, including journalists, who had marched north after police cleared protesters from nearby Chapman Square.
Officers arrested four people from that crowd, but they released all others after checking people’s identification. Officers say future arrests may happen.
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5:10 p.m.
Police have detained a large crowd of demonstrators and others several blocks north of a free speech rally in downtown Portland, Oregon.
Portland police said on Twitter that people will be identified and released pending further investigation. They say those who have been identified as participating in criminal activity will be arrested.
Several journalists at the scene said they were blocked in, along with demonstrators, and were told by officers that they were detained pending investigation for disorderly conduct.
A Portland Tribune reporter tweeted that she was held but eventually released after police took photos of her ID.
Police began clearing Chapman Square on Sunday afternoon after they said protesters were hurling objects at officers. As dozens of demonstrators marched north several blocks, officers blocked them in.
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4:10 p.m.
Police have shut down a counter-protest at a public square in downtown Portland, Oregon, because they say demonstrators were hurling bricks and other objects at officers.
Portland police cleared people out of Chapman Square near where a free speech rally was being held Sunday afternoon. Officers are using “less-lethal chemical munition” such as tear gas to disperse the crowds.
Police said people gathered at the free speech rally organized by the conservative group Patriot Prayer and other counter-protesters at City Hall were not involved.
At least three people have been arrested in a day of protests that drew thousands to the blocks around City Hall with competing messages.
The events follow the fatal stabbing of two Portland men who tried to stop another man’s anti-Muslim tirade.
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2 p.m.
Crowds have swelled to several thousand as demonstrators from varying groups have converged in downtown Portland.
A pro-Donald Trump free speech rally organized by a conservative group has begun. Kyle Chapman, the speaker for the planned event, told media earlier Sunday that it’s good to see people “uniting under the banner of American nationalism.”
Meanwhile, a number of community groups have organized counter demonstrations to rally against hate and racism.
Hundreds of people on the steps of City Hall are holding signs that read “Our city is greater than hate” and “Black lives matter.” They’re chanting “love, not hate.”
Other demonstrators across the street are chanting “USA” and holding banners in support of President Donald Trump.
Dozens of police officers and yellow police tape are attempting to keep various groups separated.
Police have arrested at least two people and confiscated various weapons.
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12:42 p.m.
Portland Police say one person has been arrested as hundreds have begun gathering for opposing rallies following the fatal stabbing of two Portland men who tried to stop another man’s anti-Muslim tirade.
Police said on its Twitter account that the person was arrested by Federal Protective Service but provided no other details.
Dozens of officers in black protective gear and others on bicycles are in downtown Portland working to keep groups separated on opposite sides of the street.
Officers say they want protesters to stay with their groups and not cross the street to escalate tensions.
Police have said they’re planning a “robust law enforcement presence due to online threats of violence between different groups.” They have warned people not to bring any weapons or items that can be used as weapons to any of the events.
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9:13 a.m.
Hundreds of people are expected to gather in Portland, Oregon, for competing rallies following the fatal stabbing of two men on a light-rail train by a man police say was shouting anti-Muslim slurs.
A pro-Donald Trump free speech rally had been previously planned for Sunday afternoon by a conservative group. The event organized by the group Patriot Prayer was billed on its Facebook page as a Trump Free Speech Rally.
Mayor Ted Wheeler last week unsuccessfully tried to get a permit for the event yanked, saying he feared violence after the May 26 killings. Counter protesters organized by religious and labor groups are also expected to show up downtown.
Mat Dos Santos, the legal director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, has said it was wrong and unconstitutional for Wheeler to try to stop the demonstration based on the viewpoint of the organizers.
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