MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

BLM organizer drives car into crowd of Trump backers at Yorba Linda rally leaving 2 hurt, here's what happened

Some people tried chasing the car that stopped a few hundred yards away and was surrounded by sheriff’s deputies

A Black Lives Matter protest against police brutality met with a violent counter agitation when a car drove through the crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump in Yorba Linda on Saturday, September 26. The driver, a woman, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and attempted murder, authorities said.

The BLM rally took place on Imperial Highway near Yorba Linda Boulevard when counter-protesters, yelling insults and carrying American flags and Trump 2020 banners, gathered along the other side. According to a news report by The Orange County Register, at one point, the counter-protesters crossed the six-lane highway and confronted the BLM agitators. Face-to-face, the sides alternately shouted “Black Lives Matter” and “USA”. As the conflict grew, sheriff’s officials declared an unlawful assembly and ordered all protesters to disperse.

A few moments later, a white sedan in the Yorba Linda Public Library parking lot accelerated through the crowd injuring two people. Some people tried chasing the car that stopped a few hundred yards away and was surrounded by sheriff’s deputies. It was not immediately clear how fast the car was going. The back windshield was broken out and appeared to have a flagpole sticking out of it and the front windshield was smashed. The driver was reportedly attending the protest, but authoities have not released much infomation about the driver yet.

Soon people started sharing the videos of the incident on social media. One shared a video and said, "Someone ran their car through a crowd of Trump supporters. OC Sheriffs took the person into custody. Ambulances were dispatched, but I don't have information on injuries."

Another said, "We don’t know if it was BLM and could’ve been that the woman panicked and pressed the gas instead of the brake? And didn’t the counter protesters cross the Imperial Highway to reach BLM?? Doesn’t matter, no one should be run over."

An angry user tweeted, "They are standing in the street! What do they expect? Do they have a permit? Did the city forget to redirect traffic? Persons driving cars should sue city for not providing minimal devices."

Journalist Brian Rokos who was present at the site reported on social media saying, "The counter-protesters call BLM protesters criminals, yet it is the counter-protesters who are breaking the law today by jaywalking across Imperial Highway to engage the BLM people. The police arrived to break things up," and "BLM protesters now bringing in riot shields. This face off took place after counter protesters crossed Imperial Highway to engage them"