Activists take down the outer barricades on Sunday as tension with Portland officials eases
With a successful GoFundMe completed, the city admitting they were wrong, and tensions in decline, activists removed the outer barricades around Red House on Mississippi on Sunday. Malcontent News cameras were given a rare behind the barricades look, with permission.
Forest Machala charged with first-degree assault and Stephen Kurtz charged with four-degree assault
Stop the Steal and anti-mask protesters clashed with counterprotesters in Olympia, Washington. When it was over there were three arrests and one person shot.
Forest Machala is facing first-degree assault charges, the equivalent of attempted murder in Washington state, for his actions on December 12, 2020.
Video shows violence and has racial slurs. Viewer discretion is advised.
[OLYMPIA] (Malcontent News) – The Washington State Patrol confirmed that 26-year old Forest Michael Machala, of Shoreline, Washington, was the person who shot a Black activist on Saturday in Olympia, Washington. Machala in custody at the Thurston County Jail, charged with 1st-degree assault, the equivalent of attempted murder under Washington state law. Machala is presently held without bail and does not have a lawyer on record.
Social media records show Machala graduated from Roosevelt High School and is a former Boy Scout. His profile indicates he has traveled, enjoys hiking, and is otherwise unremarkable. In a photo that captured Machala, he is seen in a “Make America Great Again” Trump hat and carrying a walking stick.
On Saturday, Machala and an estimated 50 to 75 heavily armed “Stop the Steal” and anti-mask Trump supporters descended on the state capitol. They rallied to protest the 2020 Presidential election results and ongoing business restrictions. Waving Gasden, Trump, and American flags, they were met by a larger and more lightly armed group of counter-protesters. About 100 Olympia, Thurston County Sheriff, and Washington State Patrol officers tried to keep the groups separated.
A series of brawls broke out, and officers deployed crowd control measures. A woman aligned with the Trump supporters was arguing with a Black man aligned with the counter-protesters. Around 1:45 PM, Machala allegedly drew a handgun and shot the Black counter-protester in the stomach. Protesters took the victim to the hospital in a private vehicle. Social media reports indicate the victim is in stable condition.
Earlier in the day, Stephen Christopher Kurtz, 42 years old of Olympia, Washington, was arrested by Olympia police for 4th-degree assault and failure to disperse. In that incident, Kurtz is accused of brandishing a gun unprovoked. Several journalists caught the incident on camera. Kurtz was released from Olympia city jail on $1000 bail. A hearing date for Kurtz has not been set.
Saturday’s shooting is the second in a week marred by gun violence. Christopher Guenzler is held at the Thurston County Jail on 1st and 2nd-degree assault charges. Guenzler is accused of shooting a protester one protester and pistol-whipping another on December 5.
Shoreline, Washington, where Machala lives, has been a flashpoint of racist activity in 2020, including threats against a group of children creating Black Lives Matter chalk art in front of their homes in August, and the attempted arson of a black-owned coffee shop in October. Officials have made no arrests in either of those incidents.
Police declared a riot at 1:30 PM today as multiple groups squared off, resulting in one shot. Multiple groups rallied in the state capitol, including an anti-mask group demanding business reopen, another group demanding schools reopen, a “stop the steal” group protesting Trump’s loss, and Black Lives Matter activists. The groups engaged in taunts and small brawls before chaos broke out.
According to eyewitnesses, a woman aligned with one of the right-wing extremist organizations started arguing with an individual from Black Lives Matter. A man who was with the woman pulled out a gun and shot the person in the stomach. Social media reports the individual is in stable condition. Olympia police tweeted they made one arrest. Social media is sharing a picture of the alleged shooter. He has not been booked into the Thurston County Jail as of this writing.
The crowd has moved. One arrest has been made. Crowd is now on the Capitol Campus.
After the riot declaration, smaller groups continued to march and engage for almost three hours. Olympia Police declared the situation under control early this evening and said they would continue to monitor the situation. The Washington State Patrol continued to have an aircraft circling the city, according to FlightAware.
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id=”7″ gal_title=”December 12, 2020 Olympia Riot”]
On December 5, 2020, during another incident with right-wing extremists, Police arrested Chris Guenzler after shooting a protester and pistol-whipping another. In that shooting incident, the victim was grazed by a bullet and sustained minor injuries. Guenzler is still in custody in the Thurston County Jail. His arraignment is scheduled for December 22, 2020.
Right-wing extremists plan another protest in Olympia tomorrow at noon.
Approximately 75 to 100 protesters marched through the Capitol Hill area on Monday to recognize the 21st anniversary of the WTO riots. The march also marked 180 days of continuous protest in Seattle. The protesters, dressed mostly in black, gathered in Cal Anderson Park before moving over five miles.
A group of 75 to 100 protesters moves through Seattle Univesity.
With Lt. Diamond on LRAD, Seattle Police arrived within minutes of the marchers moving onto Broadway. The protest continued down Broadway before turning into Seattle University outside of Swedish Hospital. Seattle police declared that protesters were blocking hospital access over the LRAD system, while nearby SPD officers mocked COVID restrictions.
A couple of protesters broke windows at a Starbucks on 12th Ave, while the smell of fresh spray paint hung in the air. Shortly after, Seattle police bike officers started to follow the protest, while a squad of approximately ten officers moved on foot. Seattle police discussed targeted arrests as they closed in on the protesters.
At East Madison Street and 16th Ave, Seattle police took three into custody during the night’s first arrests. During the arrest, someone threw a glass bottle at officers. Using their LRAD, a warning was issued to disperse immediately. SPD claims that multiple bottles and rocks were thrown during the arrests on the Seattle Police Twitter feed. Video taken during the arrests by numerous journalists and streamers do not support their version of events.
Seattle police arrest three at Madison and 16th during the WTO anniversary march.
The protest snaked through residential areas that Seattle police were pushing the protest group through. Despite moving protesters into neighborhoods, the Seattle police were issuing “apologies” via LRAD for the disruption. Protesters moved dumpsters, construction barricades, rental scooters, and recycle bins into the road to slow SPD officers’ advance.
During the march, Seattle police deployed pepper spray on several protesters, who were seen being treated by medics. There was an additional arrest, however, it was a couple of blocks from the leading protest group. The Seattle Police blotter states the arrest was for property damage.
The protest moved north toward Volunteer Park, passing Uncle Ike’s on 15th Ave East. The group paused only briefly at the controversial cannabis store, where there were sounds of windows being struck. There did not appear to be any broken windows at the store, and the Seattle Police blotter made no mention of any damage.
Seattle Police officers caught up to the protest group and declared the march an unlawful assembly. As the group moved north, SPD maintained less than a 20-foot gap between themselves and the protesters, often only being a few feet away.
During this push by Seattle Police, multiple protesters claim an officer used a racial slur against protesters, calling one of them a n****r. During this same time, we could hear Seattle Police officers disparaging Seattle Public Schools and COVID restrictions in response to a protester chant to the tune of A-B-C-D.
SPD bike officers advance on protesters during the WTO anniversary march.
Protesters took a return route to Cal Anderson Park, with significant amounts of graffiti in their wake. Seattle police made one more charge into the protest group, grabbing one individual on the sidewalk and immediately releasing them back into the protest group. The final charge appeared to be an act of unprovoked aggression by officers as the protest was winding down.
Police assets involved included the previously mentioned LRAD system, two vans, several police vehicles, and the SWAT team Bearcat. Protesters returned to Cal Anderson Park around 10:30 PM, and Seattle Police disengaged the protesters.
Black Lives Matter activist Frank Sensabaugh, known as Frank Nitty, has been released from a Milwaukee jail without charges. Police arrested Nitty last week without incident after being accused of sexual assault by a 39-year old woman. Nitty and his friends live-streamed the arrest.
The District Attorney’s office stated that Nitty was released without charges but that the investigation is ongoing. During Nitty’s arrest, Arthur Von Morgan, better known as Sino, punched a Milwaukee police officer and was also arrested. Sino’s alleged assault and subsequent arrest were live-streamed, with associates begging him to stop. Von Morgan is facing felony battery to a law enforcement officer charges from the incident. Bail has not been set and Von Morgan remains in custody.
Nitty is best known for his walk from Milwaukee to Washington, D.C., in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr. I had a Dream speech. Nitty and his group faced harassment, arrest, and Sino was shot in Pennsylvania. John and Terry Myers, the shooters in the August 25, 2020 incident in Bedford County, have gone uncharged. According to an investigation by the Philadelphia Inquirer on September 30, 2020, the Pennsylvania State Police have changed the story of the events three times. None of the versions align with three live-streams and one video shot at the time.
Frank Sensabaugh, a Milwaukee activist and central figure in the 2020 Black Lives Matter movement, was arrested yesterday on a sexual assault warrant by Milwaukee police. In a series of live stream videos posted on November 16, 2020, Nitty stated, “Police knocked on my door and said I sexually assaulted this young lady.” The videos show that Nitty was taken into custody without incident and was cooperative with the police.
According to Nitty’s videos, he took in a woman who had marched with him to Washington D.C. who was unhomed. The woman was using a rental car, rented in his name. When the car was supposed to be returned, the woman and the rental car were missing. After three days, the rental agency indicated to Nitty they would take further action. Nitty says he sent texts to the woman that he would have to go to the police if the car was not returned. Nitty denies the allegations of sexual assault calling them, “bullshit,” saying that phone calls and text messages will exonerate him.
Nitty became a central BLM figure this summer when he, and a group of supporters, marched from Milwaukee to Washington D.C. The walk was documented on social media and in the news. He was arrested in Indiana, shot at in Pennsylvania, and suffered multiple racially motivated incidents during his journey.
Nitty and his group arrived in Washington D.C. for the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s, I Had a Dream speech. While there, he was embroiled in another controversy over statements he made that some deemed homophobic.
Although the woman has been identified by other sources, Malcontent News has a policy of not publishing the name of individuals who make claims of or are victims of sexual assault.
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