Minneapolis Pig pepper sprays a 10yr old boy during a #BlackLivesMatter Protest against pig violence

Mom: Without warning, Minneapolis officer Maced 10-year-old, other protesters

The mother of a 10-year-old boy among a small group sprayed by police with Mace during a street protest in downtown Minneapolis Wednesday night said the officer gave no warning of what he was about to do and then sprayed others who objected to what he had done.

Susan Montgomery said Thursday that she and her son, Taye, were among up to 100 people who closed down two blocks downtown Wednesday night to protest the March shooting death of biracial youth Tony Robinson by a white police officer in Madison, Wis., and the decision Tuesday that the officer would not be charged.

Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau issued a statement later Wednesday night saying there would be a full investigation “into the concerns brought forth” over her officers’ conduct at the protest.

The chief said the investigation “will include gathering surveillance video and interviewing witnesses. I understand and appreciate people’s concerns and will gather the full set of facts as quickly as possible. I assure everyone this will be a thorough investigation.”

The groups Black Lives Matter and Black Liberation Project are hosting a march Thursday starting at 7 p.m. at the Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis “to stand in solidarity with 10-year-old Taye, who was pepper-sprayed by Minneapolis police last night during a march, and other victims of police abuse here and around the country,” newly elected Minneapolis NAACP President Nekima Levy-Pounds announced on her Facebook page Thursday morning.

Montgomery, of St. Paul, said the officer had been near her group of fewer than 10 protesters for some time and had to have known that her son was among them.

At one point, the officer drove up abruptly to Montgomery and the others with his siren sounding and lights flashing on S. 7th Street. “I was thinking, ‘This guy is gonna run us over,’ ” she said. “People started running. It seemed like he was mad at that point.”

After stopping, the officer “just jumped out of his car and started spraying everybody,” Montgomery said. “The Mace just happened. It hit everybody in that area. There was a mother with two sons in a stroller. We were being peaceful the entire time.”

Other protesters confronted the officer, screaming that he had just Maced a child, Montgomery continued. The officer responded by spraying them as well, she said.

With the spray in his eyes, Taye went to the ground and was carried into a nearby hotel, where milk was poured into his eyes as a remedy against the chemical irritant, his mother said.

“I’m not going to take back anything we did,” said Montgomery, who has brought her fourth-grade son to other protests. “I didn’t do anything wrong, and he didn’t do anything wrong.”

Mpls. police chief orders probe of protest, claims child hurt

Updated 10:35 a.m. | Posted 2:24 a.m.

Minneapolis officials are promising a thorough investigation after protesters said police sprayed a chemical irritant on an elementary school student during a demonstration Wednesday night.

The incident occurred as dozens of protesters marched down 7th Street in downtown Minneapolis to protest that a white Madison, Wis., officer would not be charged in the killing of a 19-year-old biracial man.

Susan Montgomery, who identified herself as the mother of the 10-year-old boy, told Kare 11 that protesters were sprayed with "Mace."

"He was just marching and had his sign and all of a sudden got sprayed and a whole bunch of people started screaming," Montgomery said of the child.

Videos posted online show demonstrators confronting an officer, who then sprays a chemical irritant directly at an adult protester.

That sparked outrage and brought responses from the Minneapolis mayor, police chief and local civil rights leaders.

Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau announced on Facebook Wednesday that her department would probe what happened.

"Our investigation will include gathering surveillance video and interviewing witnesses," Harteau wrote. "I understand and appreciate people's concerns and will gather the full set of facts as quickly as possible."

No updates or further information on the investigation were available from the department on Thursday morning.

Wednesday's march was organized by a group called the "Black Liberation Project." The group has previously organized "black brunch" protests, where demonstrators against police brutality confront diners, according to the group's social media presence and fundraising efforts.

Members of the group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Black Lives Matter Minneapolis and the Black Liberation Project have called for a joint protest outside the Hennepin County Government Center for Thursday night.

Minneapolis NAACP President and Black Lives Matter spokesperson Nekima Levy-Pounds said the Minneapolis Police Department needs to investigate the incident, review department policies and communicate any reforms to the public.

"The officer's response to the young people who were marching seems extreme," Levy-Pounds said. "The fact that he would use Mace without warning signals deeper problems within the Minneapolis Police Department that need to be addressed."

Levy-Pounds said Thursday's protest has been planned in solidarity with the young boy and aims to keep issues of police misconduct in the public eye.

Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges said in Twitter post on Wednesday night that she is aware of the situation and "asking the right questions."

The protest in Minneapolis followed Tuesday's announcement from Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne, who said he wouldn't charge Officer Matt Kenny in the death of 19-year-old Tony Robinson in March.

Ozanne said he found that Kenny used lawful deadly force after he was staggered by a punch to the head and feared for his life.