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Following Saturday's rally in support of the Second Amendment at Salem's Riverfront Park, several people reported on social media allegations of individuals being escorted out of the park or assaulted by rally attendees.

Questions were raised about what appeared to be a lack of obvious police presence. Police and the city were criticized for allowing a group without a permit to gather and then prevent others from using a public park.

The rally attracted about 200people, and Statesman Journal staff in attendance reported seeing few officers during the event.

When asked by the Statesman Journal about the public's concerns, Salem police officials said they did havea presence at the rally andweremonitoring it for violence to keep the downtown park safe.

Salem police spokesman Lt. Treven Upkes said the department is working to set the record straight after disinformation on social media spread during and following the event.

He said the allegations that the department wasn't monitoring the rally and didn't have a planned response simply weren't true.

"We actually assigned around 30 officers to the event," he said, adding that some were on call should help be needed and officerssome visible, some less visible were present throughout the entire rally.

Plainclothes officers may havedeployed depending on the event, Upkes added.

He saidit is standard procedure to avoid deploying uniformed officers into a crowd if there is no counter protest or overt criminal activity.

"We're not going to insert ourselves into those rallies and protests, be itright or left, once again to point out that neutral ideology," Upkes said."We're not going to inflame any situations by our presence or doing things."

During the rally, speakerswarned of a coming civil war, endorsed 2020 electionconspiracy theories and encouraged attendees to run for local elected office.

The Proud Boys, Tick Licker Firearms,Fifty1Fifty Tactical and the Stolen Voices Foundation were among the event's sponsors, with Proud Boys members also providing "security." About 30 people in Proud Boys attire tactical gear andblack-and-yellow clothing were seeing carrying pistols.

Open carry of such firearms is legal in Salem parks.

The rally was supposed to be headlined by Republican Rep. Mike Nearman, but he did not speak.Nearmanwas chargedFriday with official misconduct in the first degree and criminal trespass in the second degree stemming from a riot at the Oregon Capitol building Dec. 21.

Salem did not issue a permit for the Saturday rally due to pandemic restrictions. The city has not given out permits for months in an effort to deter large gatherings that may spread COVID-19.

The date that permits would be given changed from May 1 to May 31 shortly before the Saturday event.

Upkes said the park can be used for events on a first-come, first-served basis.

In a statement, police officials said:

"Please remember, theCity of Salemcannot stop constitutionally protected activities, nor can the Salem Police Department."

Event organizer Magen Marie Stevens speaks at a May Day Second Amendment rally at Riverfront Park in Salem, Oregon on Saturday, May 1, 2021. (Photo: BRIAN HAYES / STATESMAN JOURNAL)

Community members expressed concern the Police Department was showing favoritism by not having a heavy presence at the rally.

Those concerns were further compounded by rumorsthat the Proud Boys' security teams were telling people to leave, escorting people out of the public park and had even assaulted someone for taking photos of the event.

Upkessaid the police received a report afterthe event by someonewho said they were harassed by rally attendees and told to leave. The personmaking the reportdeclined to be listed as victim for the prosecution, according to police.

Upkes said police also received a call during the rally that participants were attacking people.

"We were on-site for (that report) and determined it was not occurring, and the caller did not return or answer our calls," he said.

Police officials said the dispatch center also received two separate false reports. One caller reported intoxicated people terrorizing people near the carousel, and another reported Proud Boys with clubs, chains and knives.

Officers in the area at the time of the calls saw no such activity, police said.

Demonstrators gather at a May Day Second Amendment rally at Riverfront Park in Salem, Oregon on Saturday, May 1, 2021. (Photo: BRIAN HAYES / STATESMAN JOURNAL)

Upkes encouraged people experiencing or seeing violence to immediately report it to 911 and added that many of the people reporting harassment on social media never reached out to police.

Upkes also pointed to the nuance of whether escorting people out of the park was illegal. Simply telling someone to leave the public area and even walking with them isn't necessarily a crime. But pairing that order with the threat of violence, menacing or harassment is, he said.

Before the rally on Saturday, Salem Police Department officials said their goal was to allow for constitutionally protected activity and prevent or intervene to stop the violence.

Upkes said it feels like people alleging favoritism to the far-right rallies and protests are forgetting the arrests and enforcement actions they've made at recent far-right gatherings.

"I think we're doing our job at this point in that both sides, quote-unquote, don't like how we handle their events," he said.

In a statement, police officials encouraged those who were escorted out of the park to contact the police department at 503-588-6123, option 1to file a police report.

"We understand the concerns of those who read the social media commentary," police officials said."We share those concerns because officers were in the area, and if those circumstances were occurring, any criminal behavior could have been addressed with immediacy."

Reporter ConnorRadnovich contributed to this story

For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodworth@statesmanjournal.com, call 503-910-6616 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth.

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Link:
Salem police respond to complaints of inaction at Riverfront Park Second Amendment rally - Statesman Journal