Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg tonight announced a citywide curfew will be in effect from 11 pm until 7 am on Sunday, May 31st, and asked the county do the same. Shortly after the city’s press conference, Charleston County Chairman Elliott Summey announced the county would also implement a curfew. The announcements came after a day of citizen protesting that occurred in the city.
On Saturday afternoon, a Black Lives Matter rally took place downtown with minimal issues. However, during the press conference, Charleston Police Chief Luther Reynolds said that although the majority of the protestors were peaceful, there had been some instances of vandalism by a “small group” of individuals.
“They're not interested in a message,” Reynolds said about the small group. “They want to create anarchy and they want to harm our city.”
“Charleston County joins the rest of the nation grieving over of the death of George Floyd,” County Council Chairman Elliott Summey said in statement. “Our citizens have the right to be angry and the right to protest this unspeakable tragedy. Now is the time to join together and peacefully honor Mr. Floyd's memory. Due to the property damage caused downtown, there will be a countywide curfew from 11 pm to 7 am.”
The Charleston Black Lives Matter rally was one of many taking place across the country in response to the May 25th death of George Floyd, a Minnesota man that died while in police custody.
