Police are searching for the driver of a vehicle who plowed through a crowd of protesters late Friday night as hundreds took to the streets to demand justice in the police shooting death of 17-year-old Antwon Rose.
It was the third day of intense protests over Rose’s killing by East Pittsburgh officer Michael Rosefeld, who was sworn in just hours before he fatally shot the unarmed teen on Tuesday. According to local station KDKA, hundreds of people spent the night marching and chanting at two separate demonstrations, including one that blocked the Homestead Grays Bridge.
The other protest unfolded near PNC Park, where the Pittsburgh Pirates were in the middle of the game.
“We cleared the bridge, but the some of the groups that came down 8th Avenue were still disorderly, so we attempted to clear 8th Avenue,” Allegheny County Police Supt. Coleman McDonough said. “At that time, I think we made four arrests for failure to disperse, at least one resisting arrest and potentially an assault arrest.”
At one point during the protest, a Black sedan drove into a line of demonstrators, sending fans and bystanders scrambling. Some protesters were seen chasing or throwing things at the vehicle as it fled. No injuries were reported from the incident.
Rose, 17, was shot three times by Rosefeld when he tried to flee a traffic stop last week. Police believed the car the teen was riding in was involved in a drive-by shooting minutes before.
Authorities are still investigating both shootings while local activists have called for homicide charges against the officer.