Question to Yanks - police MO in case of violent protesters

[Martinus]

This is inspired by today's right wingers' march in Poland turning somewhat violent.

What I am not talking about here is a full blown riot, but rather a situation where there is a march/protest of sorts (with a relatively dense crowd) and then someone in the crowd attacks the police (e.g. by throwing a brick or a stone at them). Usually this is followed by some scuffle with the police who try to get the culprit (assuming they can even identify him) out but get resisted by his buddies. As such marches usually have people who are prepared to exert different levels of violence (some are more peaceful, others are just hooligans) I wonder what the typical modus operandi of the US police is in situations like that?

[The Brain]

WWMIAPD?

What Would MacArthur, Ike And Patton Do?

[Barrister]

Sounds like time to read the Riot Act to me.   

[CountDeMoney]

If it's planned protest, usually both parties know it's going to be a relative peaceful affair.

But in the event of the occasional numbnut tossing a brick or something, the po po will have people on the roofs with binocs and video cameras, and can talk the action guys to the culprit.  It's not in the police's interests to exacerbate the situation of a single retard and a couple of his buddies to devolve into a block-wide brawl.  Cops acting as protest barriers are under orders to maintain their cool and the integrity of the line, with the action teams do the work of fetching ne'er-do-wells.  When they don't, that's when bad things happen.

[celedhring]

If it's planned protest, usually both parties know it's going to be a relative peaceful affair.

But in the event of the occasional numbnut tossing a brick or something, the po po will have people on the roofs with binocs and video cameras, and can talk the action guys to the culprit.  It's not in the police's interests to exacerbate the situation of a single retard and a couple of his buddies to devolve into a block-wide brawl.  Cops acting as protest barriers are under orders to maintain their cool and the integrity of the line, with the action teams do the work of fetching ne'er-do-wells.  When they don't, that's when bad things happen.

Interesting, we have a bit of problem with rioting lately around here, and that's not how the Spanish police works at all. They usually have plainclothes police mixed with the protesters to try to identify and catch the ne'er-do-wells. It rarely works and brawls are getting common.

[CountDeMoney]

Interesting, we have a bit of problem with rioting lately around here, and that's not how the Spanish police works at all. They usually have plainclothes police mixed with the protesters to try to identify and catch the ne'er-do-wells. It rarely works and brawls are getting common.

See, that's a problem;  the tactical teams--when there are tactical teams--are uniformed as well;  that whole plainclothes-KGB-undercover style doesn't work:  crowd doesn't know they're cops, other cops don't know they're cops, etc.  Causes problems.  Smacks of oppression, too.

In most instances, protest cops are told not to sweat the bottles and bricks, anyway.  You're wearing a fucking helmet, for fuck's sake.  Man up.  If they're burning cars, the first responsibility to get the firefighters to the scene, not whacking people around it.

With rare exception, we don't have the issues Europeans do when it comes to protests anyway.  Our police are different, and so are our protesters.    That's why when it does go wrong, like Seattle and Oakland, it gets silly.

[mongers]

Sounds like time to read the Riot Act to me.   

Which probably hasn't been law in England and Wales since before you were born, so the bowler is a bit redundant. 

[celedhring]

With rare exception, we don't have the issues Europeans do when it comes to protests anyway.  Our police are different, and so are our protesters.    That's why when it does go wrong, like Seattle and Oakland, it gets silly.

That's so true. When I lived in NYC, I remember all the protests against the bank bailouts and golden parachutes in 2008-2009, and the protesters where so ridiculously well behaved it was silly... they even tried not to block the entire sidewalk so people could still walk through the street.

[Barrister]

Sounds like time to read the Riot Act to me.   

Which probably hasn't been law in England and Wales since before you were born, so the bowler is a bit redundant.

Well it continues to be law in Canada.   

Her Majesty the Queen charges and commands all persons being assembled immediately to disperse and peaceably to depart to their habitations or to their lawful business on the pain of being guilty of an offence for which, on conviction, they may be sentenced to imprisonment for life. God Save the Queen.

[MadImmortalMan]

Something happens in Poland and the thing you wonder is how the US would handle it? Are you stalking us? 

[mongers]

Sounds like time to read the Riot Act to me.   

Which probably hasn't been law in England and Wales since before you were born, so the bowler is a bit redundant.

Well it continues to be law in Canada.   

Her Majesty the Queen charges and commands all persons being assembled immediately to disperse and peaceably to depart to their habitations or to their lawful business on the pain of being guilty of an offence for which, on conviction, they may be sentenced to imprisonment for life. God Save the Queen.

I wasn't desputing that, rather than since the bowler is part of Canuckistan national dress, they have no right to bandy it around.

[Richard Hakluyt]

I'm rather fond of the riot act and think it should have been retained. It's nice that the authorities take the trouble to tell people that things are getting serious and that they should back down if they don't want to face serious consequences. It may well have been useful in London last year, silly people jailed for several months for nicking a few bottles of water may have seen sense 

[Ed Anger]

I've got a runny nose. How do they deal with those in Nepal?

[Barrister]

I'm rather fond of the riot act and think it should have been retained. It's nice that the authorities take the trouble to tell people that things are getting serious and that they should back down if they don't want to face serious consequences. It may well have been useful in London last year, silly people jailed for several months for nicking a few bottles of water may have seen sense 

I think time has shown us however that few people are impressed by the reading of the Riot Act, and of course nobody ever gets life imprisonment for violating it.

The general principle is good though - you warn people to disperse, and if they don't they can be arrested without needing to prove any specific bad act.

[Martinus]

Interesting, we have a bit of problem with rioting lately around here, and that's not how the Spanish police works at all. They usually have plainclothes police mixed with the protesters to try to identify and catch the ne'er-do-wells. It rarely works and brawls are getting common.

See, that's a problem;  the tactical teams--when there are tactical teams--are uniformed as well;  that whole plainclothes-KGB-undercover style doesn't work:  crowd doesn't know they're cops, other cops don't know they're cops, etc.  Causes problems.  Smacks of oppression, too.

In most instances, protest cops are told not to sweat the bottles and bricks, anyway.  You're wearing a fucking helmet, for fuck's sake.  Man up.  If they're burning cars, the first responsibility to get the firefighters to the scene, not whacking people around it.

With rare exception, we don't have the issues Europeans do when it comes to protests anyway.  Our police are different, and so are our protesters.    That's why when it does go wrong, like Seattle and Oakland, it gets silly.

Yeah this makes sense. Here the police uses the mix of a frontal charge with water canons and plain-cloth interventions and it doesn't really work all that well (the former brings charges of police brutality and the latter of police provocation).