Woman shot on Plaza Saturday night after protests for George Floyd in Kansas City
A woman was shot late at night on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, she told police, after protests Saturday turned dangerous amid tear gas, fires and arrests.
The woman reported she was on the Plaza when she was shot about 1 a.m., according to the Kansas City Police Department.
She took herself to a hospital, with injuries that did not appear to be life-threatening.
Detectives went to the hospital to interview the woman, who said she did not know who shot her. She declined to give any other information, police said.
Police officers had reported hearing gunshots near 43rd and Main streets around the time she reported being shot, but they did not find any victims or a shooting scene.
It was unclear if the shooting was related to the protest at the Plaza.
The protest drew 400 to 500 people Saturday, marking another in a series of protests across the country in the days that followed the death of George Floyd. Floyd died May 25 in Minneapolis after Derek Chauvin, a police officer there, applied his knee to Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes while he lay prone and pleading to breathe while in handcuffs.
By the end of the night, police would arrest about 50 people and report 10 people injured. Protesters threw water bottles at officers, with Capt. David Jackson, a Kansas City Police Department spokesman, estimating more than 100 rocks and bottles were thrown.
Police used tear gas to try to disperse the crowds, with limited success. Several businesses were damaged as police said people were trying to break into them. A police car was set on fire.
Gov. Mike Parson declared a state of emergency, making available the National Guard and the Missouri Highway Patrol to support local authorities.
Gun violence will be the subject of a new, statewide journalism project The Star is undertaking in Missouri this year in partnership with the national service program Report for America. As part of this project, The Star will seek the community’s help.
To contribute, visit Report for America online at reportforamerica.org.
This story was originally published May 31, 2020 at 11:13 AM.
