MEAWW.COM / NEWS / CRIME & JUSTICE

Pickup truck hits BLM protester during Breonna Taylor march in Hollywood, horrific moment caught on camera

Later another vehicle drove through the protesters but no one was injured in this instance

A female Black Lives Matter protester was run over by a pickup truck in a shocking incident in Hollywood on Thursday night, September 24, reports state. The incident occurred as demonstraters assimilated nationwide to protest the grand jury's decision to not bring murder charges against police officers involved in Breonna Taylor's death. Another similar incident occurred in the region when a car drove through a crowd of protesters; no one was injured in this instance.

The incidents occurred at night when protesters were attempting to march to a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) substation. Video taken from the site of the incident captured the horrific incident when the black pickup truck was seen hitting a female Black Lives Matter protester and then driving over her. The incident occurred as the large crowd of protesters were marching down Sunset Boulevard at 9 pm chanting "no justice, no peace." A clip, also shown on local television, shows the pickup truck driving amidst the protesters and striking the woman who was holding a protest sign. She is then thrown backward onto the road as screams ring out. 

It was unclear whether the pick-up initially drove into the crowd or if protesters gathered around it as the driver tried to navigate down Sunset. LAPD in a statement said the truck "maneuvered through the crowd and became involved in an altercation." "As the driver attempted to get away from the situation, he struck a protester standing in the street," the statement added.

Within seconds of striking the woman, protesters begin to surround the truck, attempting to open the driver's side door, the trucker, however, accelerates and speeds off. The vehicle then appears to drive over the injured woman and narrowly misses a street medic who had rushed toward her to help her. Protesters in the clip can be heard gasping, shouting "oh my god" and calling for medical assistance. 

Reports state that an LAPD helicopter, which was tracing the protest, succeeded in following the truck as it sped off and directed officers on ground who pulled over the driver without any incident. The driver was then taken into police custody, his name, however, has not been released yet. It was later reported by Fox News that the unidentified male driver was released by the officers.

The woman was hospitalized with minor injuries, according to the police. 

The second incident occurred at the same protest and was caught on camera by the KTLA news helicopter, which showed a white Prius driving through a crowd of protesters and then speeding off when it was chased by protesters. The second incident occurred around 9:30 pm when protesters blocked off the road at Cahuenga and Hollywood boulevard while marching through the area. Although other cars stopped to let the protesters through, the Prius drove through the crowd, weaving around protesters to cross the intersection. Shortly after the incident, a truck escorting the protesters chased down the Prius and cut it off. Several protesters also surrounded the car, reaching through the driver's window. The Prius driver, however, managed to escape after he reveresed out of the way of the protesters and ran a red light. 

Police later pulled the vehicle over on Santa Monica Boulevard and the driver was detained. No injuries were reported regarding the second incident, reports state. All the victims and drivers have been identified and an investigation into both incidents is underway, according to the police. The police have not released their identities to the public.

Fresh protests erupted nationwide after a grand jury, on Wednesday, September 23, indicted one police officer on criminal charges nearly six months after Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black EMT, was allegedly shot dead by police in Louisville, Kentucky on March 13. The decision of the jury was presented against former officer Brett Hankison to a judge. The charge against him is of 'wanton endangerment'. The grand jury or the presiding judge did not elaborate on the charges against the former officer. Only one out of the three officers involved in the fatal shooting was charged.