L.A. police chief apologizes; mother of Floyd's daughter speaks out; another church leader rips Trump visit – George Floyd live updates

Jorge L. Ortiz and John Bacon, USA TODAY
·14 min read

Protesters across the nation and Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden repeated the words "I can't breathe'' -- the last ones uttered by George Floyd before dying at the hands of Minneapolis police last week -- as demonstrations continued to sprout throughout the U.S. on Tuesday.

Biden joined several governors, senators from both parties and two high-level church leaders in deriding President Donald Trump's handling of the protests.

In Washington, D.C., protesters were back at the area near the White House where they were dispersed with harsh tactics the day before despite their peaceful behavior.

And in Los Angeles -- where police say they have arrested more than 2,700 -- thousands of demonstrators took to the streets. Some are demanding the firing of the city's police chief over remarks he made about looting in the nation's second-largest city.

A closer look at some recent developments:

  • Six Atlanta police officers are facing charges over an incident caught on video where they are seen using stun guns and forcefully removing two college students from a car.

  • Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said an investigation would be launched into the Minneapolis Police Department, which is also facing a civil rights complaint.

  • George Floyd's funeral will be held June 9 in his hometown of Houston. The family accepted an offer from former boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. to pay for the funeral services. There will be two memorial services held in Minneapolis and North Carolina before the funeral.

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Our live blog will be updated throughout the day. For first-in-the-morning updates, sign up for the Daily Briefing. Here's the latest news:

Large protest again near White House

Crowds in the thousands chanted, "I can't breathe'' on a fifth day of protests in Washington, D.C., as demonstrators returned to the area near the White House where they were forcefully removed Monday.

Law enforcement had used what appeared to be tear gas -- officials later said they were gas canisters -- shields and horses to clear out a group of peaceful demonstrators to make way for President Donald Trump's visit to a nearby church. There, he stood and was photographed holding a Bible.

Several thousand protesters were gathered north of Lafayette Square on Tuesday, forced onto an adjacent street by a large, black chain link fence that had been installed overnight around the park. Gone, for the moment, were the confrontational police lines that were so prominent a day before. It wasn't clear how forcefully police would enforce the 7 p.m. ET curfew.

L.A. police chief apologizes for remarks amid calls for his firing

Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore has apologized and is fending off calls for his firing after likening looters in the city to those responsible for George Floyd's death.

"We didn't have protests last night. We had criminal acts," Moore said Monday. "We didn't have people mourning the death of this man, George Floyd. We had people capitalizing. His death is on their hands, as much as it is those officers."

Moore tweeted out an apology, saying he misspoke.

"While I did immediately correct myself, I recognize that my initial words were terribly offensive,'' Moore said via Twitter. "Looting is wrong, but it is not the equivalent of murder and I did not mean to equate the two. I deeply regret and humbly apologize for my characterization.''

Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti was called out on social media, with people demanding that he fire Moore. Later Tuesday, protesters gathered at Garcetti's home.

On Tuesday, more than 1,000 protesters made their way for a second day through the streets of Hollywood, and several hundred demonstrated in downtown Los Angeles, at times kneeling en masse and at others calling for Moore's resignation.

-- Jordan Culver

Mother of Floyd's daughter speaks out about her loss

The mother of George Floyd's 6-year-old daughter lamented that he'll miss the girl's future milestones, like graduating and getting married, in her first public comments since he died in police custody May 25.

From a podium at the city hall in Minneapolis, where Floyd moved from Houston seeking better work opportunities, Roxie Washington said she wanted to speak up for him and their daughter Gianna, who joined her. Washington also said she wants justice for Floyd.

“He’ll never see her grow up, graduate. He will never walk her down the aisle,'' said Washington, who struggled to fight back tears. "If there’s a problem she’s had and needs her dad, she does not have that anymore.”

-- Mark Emmert

Six Atlanta officers charged in incident with college students

Six Atlanta police officers seen on video forcefully pulling two young college students out of their car during Saturday protests have been charged, mostly with aggravated assault, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said. Two of the officers, investigators Ivory Streeter and Mark Gardner, were fired Sunday. The incident was caught on body cam video and denounced by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

Messiah Young and his girlfriend Taniyah Pilgrim were caught in traffic Saturday night during protests over George Floyd's killing when they were approached by the officers yelling commands. The video shows the officers using stun guns on the couple, breaking the car window with a baton and yanking out both students, who are heard screaming and asking what was happening.

"We understand that our officers are working very long hours under an enormous amount of stress,'' Bottoms said, "but we also understand that the use of excessive force is never acceptable.''

Another church leader denounces Trump

For the second day in a row, a high-ranking church official has taken issue with President Donald Trump's actions.

A day after a much-criticized photo op at a fire-damaged Episcopal church near the White House, Trump took his anti-protester "law and order" message to a Catholic shrine Tuesday, a visit that drew swift condemnation from a top church official.

Trump and First Lady Melania Trump traveled across town Tuesday for a brief visit to Saint John Paul II National Shrine adjacent to The Catholic University of America. The Trumps posed for photos and stood for a few minutes in front of a statue of Saint Pope John Paul II outside the shrine.

Washington Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory expressed his disapproval of the presidential visit, saying in a statement: “I find it baffling that and reprehensible that any Catholic facility would allow itself to be so egregiously misused and manipulated in a fashion that violates our religious principles, which call us to defend the rights of all people even those with whom we might disagree.”

On Monday, Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington told CNN she was "outraged'' that police in riot gear had used tear gas to clear a path across Lafayette Park for Trump and other members of his administration to walk to St. John's Episcopal Church for a photo-op.

-- David Jackson, Michael Collins and Nicholas Wu

GOP senators criticize Trump: 'Word of God as a political prop'

Minnesota files human rights complaint against Minneapolis police

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights said it will file a civil rights charge against the Minneapolis Police Department in the death of George Floyd and begin an investigation.

According to a news release, the investigation will focus on policies, procedures and practices over the past 10 years to "determine if the MPD has engaged in systemic discriminatory practices towards people of color and ensure any such practices are stopped."

“Silence is complicity,'' Gov. Tim Walz said in a statement. "Minnesotans can expect our administration to use every tool at our disposal to deconstruct generations of systemic racism in our state.”

-- Mark Emmert

Biden blasts Trump, urges national unity

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Tuesday invoked George Floyd's last words, "I can't breathe" to address the nation's escalating protests and racial tensions. Biden, speaking at Philadelphia City Hall, criticized President Donald Trump's handling of the protests, accusing him of trafficking in "fear and division." But he added that problems of racism and social injustice in America go beyond Trump.

"I wish I could say that hate began with Donald Trump and will end with him. But it didn't and it won't," Biden said. "American history is not a fairy tale with a guaranteed happy ending."

Minneapolis officers fire paint "marking rounds" to enforce curfew

A video shared on social media appears to show Minneapolis law enforcement shooting "marking rounds" of green paint at people standing on their front porch last weekend. The video, which was shared by Minneapolis resident Tanya Kerssen on Saturday evening, shows a Humvee and an officer dressed in riot gear passing by her home to enforce curfew. A group of around 15 to 20 police officers and National Guardsmen then approach the front of the house, shouting, "Go inside!" five or six times and, "Get in your house now!"

After around 10 seconds of commands, one officer yells, "Light 'em up," and starts shooting green paint bullets at Kerssen and other unidentified people, according to the video. Neither Kerssen nor the police department immediately responded to a request for comment from USA TODAY.

– Joshua Bote

New York City gets earlier curfew after night of violence, looting

New York City will impose an 8 p.m. curfew for the remainder of the week after violent protests Monday night led to more than 700 arrests. Mayor Bill de Blasio vowed Tuesday to halt looting and violence, saying an 11 p.m. curfew Monday failed to quell the dangerous situation. The looting spread across the boroughs and in midtown Manhattan, where store windows were smashed, goods stolen and fights broke out.

"We saw stuff last night that we will not accept. And we can fight back and we will fight back," de Blasio said.

– Joseph Spector

Truck driver who drove into protesters in Minneapolis released

The truck driver who drove into protesters on a Minneapolis interstate over the weekend was released from jail Tuesday, while prosecutors investigate the incident, the Star-Tribune reported.

Bogdan Vechirko was jailed Sunday evening on suspicion of assault and held until midday Tuesday in connection with his empty fuel tanker narrowly missing a crowd marching in protest, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said in a statement to the Star-Tribune.

“Investigators are in the process of gathering additional information and answers to aid in the charging decision,” the statement continued.

Minnesota Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington told the newspaper Monday that there was no information that made the incident seem intentional.

-- Elinor Aspegren

Federal prisons locked down

The federal Bureau of Prisons has imposed a national lockdown in a move resembling the agency's response to mass rioting at several facilities 25 years ago. Federal authorities, already struggling to contain deadly outbreaks of the coronavirus that has left 68 inmates dead, had ordered nationwide restrictions on inmate movements in March in an attempt to limit the virus' spread. But officials took the more restrictive action late Monday, citing the sometimes violent protests on the nation's streets.

"In light of extensive protest activity occurring around the country, the BOP – in an abundance of caution – is implementing an additional, temporary security measure to ensure the good order and security of our institutions," the bureau said in a statement.

– Kevin Johnson

TikTok apologizes for #GeorgeFloyd, #BlackLivesMatter glitches

TikTok promised to promote diversity on its platform and denied claims the social media service blocked posts featuring hashtags related to the death of George Floyd. TikTok said a technical glitch made it temporarily appear as if posts with the hashtags #BlackLivesMatter and #GeorgeFloyd received no views. The platform said it was dealing with a display issue, and videos featuring those tags amassed more than 2 billion views.

The problem was not "an intentional act to suppress the experiences and invalidate the emotions felt by the Black community," read an apology blog post from Vanessa Pappas, TikTok's general manager, and director of creator community Kudzi Chikumbu.

– Brett Molina

Music industry, social media go silent for Blackout Tuesday

The music industry took a break from business-as-usual to mark Blackout Tuesday to call attention to the deaths of George Floyd and other black Americans. Big names in entertainment such as Katy Perry, Kylie Jenner, Kevin Hart and Timothee Chalamet showed their support Tuesday on social media, using the hashtags #blackouttuesday and #theshowmustbepaused to help draw attention to the effort.

"While this is only one day, we are working on ways to actively fight for meaningful, systematic change against the injustices black people continue to face," the post from the official @hamiltonmusical Instagram account read.

– Gary Dinges

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More protest coverage from USA TODAY

Protesters in DC take shelter inside resident's home after curfew

Dozens of protesters took refuge inside a stranger's home in Washington overnight Monday as police funneled a crowd of demonstrators onto one street after a 7 p.m. citywide curfew. Rahul Dubey told NBC Washington that he acted instinctively when he opened his door to roughly 60 demonstrators near his house around 10 p.m., and allowed them to stay until the curfew was lifted at 6 a.m. Reports on social media showed police corralling a group of demonstrators onto one D.C. street as they used pepper spray on the crowd. Dubey told the TV station he was also pepper sprayed.

"The crowd came racing through like a tornado," he said. "We had to keep the door open and keep pulling them in. ... It's the same you would do if there's a storm."

– Ryan W. Miller

Man fatally shot, officer critically injured at Las Vegas protests

One man was dead and a Las Vegas police officer was on life support Tuesday following a night of angry protests that included two separate shooting incidents. Sheriff Joe Lombardo said officers were attempting to clear protesters throwing rocks and bottles from Las Vegas Boulevard when the officer was shot sometime before midnight. The officer was in "grave" condition, Lombardo said.

Lombardo said the second incident involved the fatal shooting of an armed man wearing body armor by police and federal agents guarding a federal building in downtown Las Vegas. Lombardo said the man had reached for a firearm. Investigations of both shootings were continuing, Lombardo said.

"What has occurred is utterly unacceptable," Lombardo said. "I hope the community sees it that way, too."

4 officers shot in St. Louis, police say

Four St. Louis police officers were shot early Tuesday as a peaceful protest devolved into "mayhem," Police Chief John Hayden said. The police department tweeted that the officers were taken to a hospital with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening after the shootings overnight. It was unclear who had fired the shots.

Several hundred people rallied peacefully Monday afternoon outside the justice center in downtown St. Louis, including Mayor Lyda Krewson and St. Louis Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards. Protesters later walked to the Gateway Arch National Park and then onto nearby Interstate 64. But later Monday, protesters gathered in front of police headquarters, where officers fired tear gas. Some protesters smashed windows at a downtown 7-11 store and stole items from inside before the building was set on fire.

More news about the George Floyd protests

Contributing: The Associated Press

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: George Floyd protest: Trump, church leaders; Atlanta cops; NYC curfew