Police: Man who pulled gun at protest in Eugene, Oregon detained, not arrested

by News Staff

Mon, July 27th 2020, 6:53 PM UTC

Robert Scherle, who photographs in black and white, captured an image at a protest outside the Lane County Jail in Eugene, Oregon, on July 26, 2020, that appears to show a man pointing a handgun at someone. Other photojournalists at the scene confirmed seeing the incident. (Detail from photo by Robert Scherle/Used with permission)

A protester holding a sparkler in front of the jail. Roughly 100 people gathered Sunday night, July 26, at the federal courthouse in Eugene, Oregon, for a protest that was advertised on social media as being a demonstration against federal police and fascism. The original call for an ?emergency protest? had support from at least some members of Black Unity but by the time the protesters gathered at 9 p.m. Black Unity had distanced themselves from the march and one Black Unity member was emphatic that ?this protest is not a Black Unity event." The protest started at the courthouse but later moved to the Lane County jail where protesters confronted Eugene police officers dressed in riot gear. Two separate fights broke out throughout the night and during one of the exchanges a man pulled out his handgun and aimed it at protesters. No shots were fired and after a brief moment of chaos the man wielding the handgun ran from the scene. Eugene police officers detained the man shortly after he ran from the jail. Photo by Payton Bruni

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Robert Scherle, who photographs in black and white, captured an image at a protest outside the Lane County Jail in Eugene, Oregon, on July 26, 2020, that appears to show a man pointing a handgun at someone. Other photojournalists at the scene confirmed seeing the incident. (Detail from photo by Robert Scherle/Used with permission)

EUGENE, Ore. - A man pulled a gun at a protest outside the Lane County Jail on Sunday night and was later taken into custody by police, according to reports to police and a photograph of the incident.

He was not arrested, a police spokesperson said.

"I can confirm we took someone into custody," Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner said Monday. "We did make an arrest last night. I actually personally witnessed the arrest."

"The individual was reported to have unholstered a weapon in amongst the protesters Initial reports were that he pointed that gun at somebody, which is a crime in the state of Oregon - menacing," Skinner said Monday. "We made that arrest, I do not have the details on whether he was lodged or cited and released."

Robert Scherle, who photographs in black and white, captured an image of the incident at the protest.

A cropped version of the image appears above. Here is the full frame:

Police said the incident happened in front of the jail around 11:16 p.m. Sunday night.

A spokesperson for police said "the man was wearing a gun on his hip, and there are reports that during a dispute, he displayed that firearm. We are investigating the circumstances."

The spokesperson added:

We detained him to identify him and investigate, but he has not been arrested. We don’t generally release subject’s names unless they are arrested, or we are trying to apprehend them based on probable cause. On the back of his helmet, it said ‘press.’ He is not a member of the press that we can tell. There were a number of others wearing ‘press’ items but carrying shields and other items.

Police said firearms were also displayed Saturday during the protest and counter-protest that devolved into rioting overnight into early Sunday morning.

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"We had a hasty team on our way to deal with that because it looked like it could have gone bad in a hurry," Skinner said. "Cooler heads prevailed and the truck ended up leaving. We had guns pointed at each other on both sides, and so at that point in the protest with the number of people around, trying to be strategic about how we get in there to deal with it is a tough one. And then he drove off."

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