A woman attending a Black Lives Matter protest was hit by a car allegedly driven by a neighboring town’s mayor, The Washington Post reported.
Video shows the driver of a yellow car laying on the horn before driving directly into a group of protesters in Medford, Oregon on June 1, the Post reported. The woman identified the driver, who hit her with the left bumper and mirror of his car, as the mayor of Phoenix, Oregon, Chris Luz.
“The city of Phoenix cannot ignore that the mayor is in fact a criminal. There is absolutely no excuse for the actions that you took that day. Chris, you assaulted me,” said Mikala Johnston, the protester hit by the car, the Post reported.
The case is under investigation, but no arrests or citations have been issued, Lieutenant Mike Budreau of the Medford Police Department told the Daily Caller News Foundation. (RELATED: Beating Up An Old Man, Assaulting Journalists, And Ramming Protesters With Cars: Police Violence During Protests Caught On Video)
Luz did not respond to Johnston’s claims, the Post reported.
“We were not causing any harm. Any logical driver would have thought to wait for those couple hundred marchers to walk on by,” Johnston said, according to the Post. She said when the crowd got to a main street she noticed a car “accelerating toward [them] at a less than comfortable speed,” and raised her sign so that the driver could see why the street was closed.
The video shows the driver outside of his car cursing at one protester for denting his hood while arguing with others to let him through, the Post reported.
“A man like Chris does not deserve to hold a spot of power. If he can lose his temper that easily and react in an immature, impulsive, outrageous and hypocritical manner, imagine the harm he can bring the city of Phoenix,” Johnston said, according to the Post.
Luz did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
Individuals have driven into protests at least 19 other times since May 25, the Post reported. Eight of the drivers face criminal charges.
Nationwide protests started after a former Minneapolis police officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes, videos of the arrest show.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
