The Latest in the manslaughter trial of a Minnesota police officer who fatally shot a black motorist during a traffic stop (all times local) :
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – The Latest in the manslaughter trial of a Minnesota police officer who fatally shot a black motorist during a traffic stop (all times local) : 11: 20 a.m. Police in St. Paul, Minnesota, are confronting protesters who have blocked a downtown freeway following an officer’s acquittal in the death of a black motorist. Protesters have been demonstrating for hours with a rally that began Friday evening at the Capitol following the acquittal of Officer Jeronimo Yanez. He was charged with manslaughter in the death last July of Philando Castile. Hours after the mostly peaceful demonstration began, a splinter group of scores of protesters walked down a ramp onto Interstate 94. A line of police in riot gear eventually met them, and demonstrators were warned they will be arrested if they don’t disperse. ___ 10: 30 a.m. People protesting the acquittal of a Minnesota police officer in the shooting of a black motorist have shut down a freeway in St. Paul. Scores of protesters streamed onto Interstate 94, splitting off a group of thousands who had marched several blocks some three hours after a rally at the state Capitol. Their anger followed the acquittal of Officer Jeronimo Yanez in the shooting death of Philando Castile. Yanez shot Castile during a July 6 traffic stop seconds after Castile informed him he was carrying a gun. The officer testified that Castile was ignoring his commands not to pull out the gun and he feared for his life. Traffic was backing up on I-94 as a couple of hundred people collected on the highway. Police quickly diverted traffic. ___ 10: 10 p.m. Thousands of chanting demonstrators are continuing a march toward the St. Paul Cathedral to protest a police officer’s acquittal in the shooting of a black motorist. The demonstration has been peaceful, but has caused the suspension of light rail service in the city since it began Friday evening. Officer Jeronimo (yeh-RON’-ih-moh) Yanez was cleared Friday in last July’s death of Philando Castile. Yanez shot Castile during a July 6 traffic stop seconds after Castile informed him he was carrying a gun. The officer testified that Castile was ignoring his commands not to pull out the gun and he feared for his life. The protesters are carrying signs that read « Black Lives Matter » and « Blue Lies Matter » and chanting such phrases as « Hands up, don’t shoot. » ___ 8: 30 p.m. Hundreds of demonstrators are beginning a march from Minnesota’s state Capitol to protest a police officer’s acquittal in the fatal shooting last year of a black motorist. Officer Jeronimo (yeh-RON’-ih-moh) Yanez was cleared Friday in last July’s death of Philando Castile. Yanez shot Castile during a July 6 traffic stop seconds after Castile informed him he was carrying a gun. The officer testified that Castile was ignoring his commands not to pull out the gun and he feared for his life. The crowd Friday evening is mixed and includes many children, including some who are stenciling posters as the event continues. Some protesters say they plan to begin a march to the nearby St. Paul Cathedral and back. ___ 7: 15 p.m. A few hundred people have gathered at Minnesota’s state Capitol to protest the acquittal of a police officer in the fatal shooting of a black motorist. Officer Jeronimo (yeh-RON’-ih-moh) Yanez was cleared Friday in last July’s death of Philando Castile. Yanez shot Castile during a July 6 traffic stop seconds after Castile informed him he was carrying a gun. The officer testified that Castile was ignoring his commands not to pull out the gun and he feared for his life. The crowd in St. Paul is diverse and includes some people with children. Some are carrying signs that read « Unite for Philando » and « Black Lives Matter. » They’re chanting « No justice, no peace, prosecute the police. » ___ 5: 25 p.m. The prosecutor who brought charges against a Minnesota police officer over the shooting death of a black motorist is urging acceptance of the officer’s acquittal of manslaughter. Ramsey County Attorney John Choi says he knows Friday’s acquittal of Officer Jeronimo Yanez will be painful for many people. But Choi says the verdict « must be respected » because it’s a product of the rule of law. A jury deliberated five days before clearing Yanez on Friday in the death of 32-year-old Philando Castile. Castile was shot just a few seconds after he informed Yanez during a traffic stop that he was carrying a handgun. Choi says Yanez « made a horrible mistake from our perspective. » He says he knows Yanez would take back what happened if he could. He urged any protests over the verdict to be peaceful. ___ 5: 10 p.m. The girlfriend of a black man who was shot and killed by a Minnesota police officer last July says she’s disappointed with the jury’s verdict to acquit the officer. Officer Jeronimo Yanez was found not guilty Friday of three counts stemming from the shooting of Philando Castile. Yanez, who is Latino, shot Castile seconds after Castile said he was armed. The shooting’s aftermath was streamed live on Facebook by Castile’s girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds. Reynolds issued a statement Friday saying that Castile was racially profiled and was obeying Yanez’s instructions and was reaching for his wallet when he was shot. She says it’s sad that this type of behavior is condoned because Yanez is a police officer. She ended her statement by saying: « God help America. » ___ 5 p.m. Community activists and supporters of the family of a black man who was killed by a Minnesota police officer last July are planning to hold a rally at the state Capitol. Officer Jeronimo Yanez, who is Latino, was aquitted Friday on all counts stemming from the shooting of 32-year-old Philando Castile. Castile was killed during a traffic stop moments after he told Yanez he was armed. He had a permit to carry. After the verdict, Mel Reeves, one of the rally organizers, said the event would be peaceful, but people need to start questioning the system and the verdict adds insult to injury. He says: « What kind of system do we live in that we can’t get justice? » Reeves said Castile is dead because he was racially profiled. He said he believed Yanez lied about seeing Castile’s gun. ___ 4: 10 p.m. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton is offering condolences to the family of a black motorist who was killed by a police officer last year after the officer was acquitted of manslaughter. A jury deliberated five days before acquitting Officer Jeronimo Yanez in the death of 32-year-old Philando Castile. Yanez shot Castile five times seconds after Castile informed him during a traffic stop that he was carrying a handgun. Dayton called Castile’s death « a terrible tragedy. » His statement made no mention of Yanez, but noted that « thousands » of police officers are « working to correct the injustices in our state. » Dayton drew criticism last year after suggesting that Castile might not have been shot if he was white. ___ 4 p.m. A Minnesota city says it will dismiss a police officer even though he was cleared of all charges in the fatal shooting of a black motorist. The city of St. Anthony says it concluded the public « will be best served » if Officer Jeronimo (yeh-RON’-ih-moh) Yanez no longer works for the city. The statement says the city plans to offer Yanez a « voluntary separation » so he can find another job. The city says Yanez will not return to active duty. A jury deliberated five days before clearing Yanez of all charges in the death of 32-year-old Philando Castile. Castile was shot seconds after telling Yanez during a traffic stop that he was carrying a gun. Yanez testified that Castile ignored his commands not to pull out the gun and he feared for his life. ___ 3: 50 p.m. A member of the jury that acquitted a Minnesota police officer of manslaughter in the shooting of a black motorist called deliberations « very, very hard » and says he thinks the panel delivered the right verdict. Dennis Ploussard says the jury was split 10-2 early this week in favor of acquittal for Officer Jeronimo Yanez, who was charged in the death of 32-year-old Philando Castile. Ploussard says jurors spent a lot of time dissecting the « culpable negligence » requirement for conviction. He says the last two holdouts eventually agreed on acquittal. Ploussard wouldn’t identify the two holdouts, but says they were not the jury’s only two black members. Ploussard declined to say whether he thought Yanez acted appropriately. He says the jury sympathizes with the Castile family. ___ 3: 30 p.m. The mother of a Minnesota motorist who was shot dead by a police officer last July says the officer got away with « murder. » Valerie Castile spoke angrily after a jury acquitted Officer Jeronimo Yanez of manslaughter in the death of her son Philando.
