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Protests turn violent in St. Louis for 2nd night

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Protests turned violent for the second night on Saturday in reaction to the acquittal of a white former St. Louis police officer in the fatal shooting of a black man, as a small group of demonstrators refused to disperse, breaking windows and throwing objects at police, who moved in with armored vehicles and in riot gear.

The confrontation took place in the Delmar Loop of the St. Louis suburb of University City - known for concert venues, restaurants, shops and bars and including the famous Blueberry Hill where rock legend Chuck Berry played for many years. The area had been the scene of a tense but calm march earlier in the evening that ended with organizers calling for people to leave and reconvene Sunday afternoon.

But a small group of protesters refused to go. Hundreds of police in riot gear eventually moved in and ordered them to disperse, saying the protest was unlawful. The demonstrators retreated down a street, breaking windows and throwing objects at police.

Some protesters were seen in handcuffs but the number of arrests was not immediately known.

The sudden eruption followed a day of non-violent demonstrations at suburban shopping malls and during the march in University City.

Demonstrators shouted slogans such as "black lives matter" and "it is our duty to fight for our freedom" as they marched through West County Center mall in the city of Des Peres, west of St. Louis, to decry a judge's verdict Friday clearing ex-officer Jason Stockley of first-degree murder in the 2011 shooting of Anthony Lamar Smith. A group also demonstrated at Chesterfield Mall in the suburbs and at a regional food festival.

Organizers took their grievances to the suburbs Saturday to spread the impact of the protests beyond predominantly black neighborhoods to those that are mainly white.

"I don't think racism is going to change in America until people get uncomfortable," said Kayla Reed of the St. Louis Action Council, a protest organizer.

Susanna Prins, 27, a white woman from University City, carried a sign reading, "White silence is violence."

"Not saying or doing anything makes you complicit in the brutalization of our friends and neighbors," Prins said.

Smith's death is just one of several high-profile U.S. cases in recent years in which a white officer killed a black suspect, including the 2014 killing of Michael Brown in nearby Ferguson that sparked months of angry and sometimes violent protests.

Federal prosecutors said Saturday they won't open a new civil rights investigation into the killing. Justice Department spokeswoman Lauren Ehrsam said the department decided in September not to prosecute, but didn't announce it then to avoid affecting the judge's decision.

After Stockley was acquitted on Friday, sporadic violence resulted in nearly three-dozen people arrested and 11 police officers injured, including a broken jaw and dislocated shoulder, police said. Five officers were taken to hospitals. Police said that 10 businesses were damaged. Protesters also broke a window and spattered red paint on the home of St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson.

Krewson said she was not home at the time but her family was. She said it was "irritating" to have her house vandalized.

"This story is not about whether I got my windows broken or not. This is about coming together to have a better St. Louis for all of us," she told a news conference Saturday.

Reed said protesters went to Krewson's house because she was not in the streets with the people even though she had expressed support on social media.

Stockley shot Smith, 24, after the suspected drug dealer fled from officers trying to arrest him.

Stockley testified he felt he was in danger because he saw Smith holding a silver revolver when the suspect backed his car toward officers and sped away.

Prosecutors said Stockley planted a gun in Smith's car after the shooting. The officer's DNA was on the weapon but Smith's wasn't. Dashcam video from Stockley's cruiser recorded him saying he was "going to kill this (expletive)." Less than a minute later, he shot Smith five times.

Stockley's lawyer dismissed the comment as "human emotions" during a dangerous pursuit. St. Louis Circuit Judge Timothy Wilson, who said prosecutors didn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Stockley murdered Smith, said the statement could be ambiguous.

Stockley, 36, who left the force in 2013 and moved to Houston, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after the verdict that he understands how the video looks bad, but insisted he did nothing wrong.

"I know everyone wants someone to blame, but I'm just not the guy," Stockley said.

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Protesters gather on a street in St. Louis, Mo., on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis Police officer Jason Stockley. On Friday, Stockley, a white man, was acquitted in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man, following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
A protester yells as a woman rushes to close the doors to a department store as protesters march through West County Mall in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Des Peres, Mo. Stockley was acquitted on Friday, in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man, following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
Protesters march through West County Mall in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Des Peres, Mo. Stockley was acquitted on Friday, in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man, following a high-speed chase.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
Protesters march through West County Mall in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley as police officers stand by Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Des Peres, Mo. Stockley was acquitted on Friday, in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man, following a high-speed chase.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
FILE - This undated file photo provided by the St. Louis Police Department shows former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley, who is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the December 2011 shooting death of Anthony Lamar Smith. A television station reported that a ruling is expected Friday, Sept. 15, 2017, in Stockley's case, and Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens has put the National Guard on standby in case unrest breaks out. (St. Louis Police Department via AP, File) The Associated Press
This undated family photo supplied by Christina Wilson shows Anthony Lamar Smith holding his daughter Autumn Smith. Anthony Lamar Smith was killed in 2011 during a confrontation with police. A judge may be close to a ruling in the case against Former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley, who is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action in the December 2011 shooting death of Smith. Gov. Eric Greitens says he's has put the National Guard on standby in case unrest breaks out. (Family photo courtesy Christina Wilson via AP) The Associated Press
A broken window is seen at the home of St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, as protesters gather, Friday, Sept. 15, 2017, in St. Louis, after a judge found a white former St. Louis police officer, Jason Stockley, not guilty of first-degree murder in the death of a black man, Anthony Lamar Smith, who was fatally shot following a high-speed chase in 2011. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
In this undated photo released by 22nd Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri, St. Louis Circuit Judge Timothy Wilson is seen. Wilson acquitted Jason Stockley, a white former St. Louis police officer Friday, Sept. 15, 2017, in the death of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man who was fatally shot following a high-speed chase in 2011. (22nd Judicial Circuit Court of Missouri via AP) The Associated Press
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, right, and Christina Wilson, the fiancée of Anthony Lamar Smith, deliver a statement in anticipation of a verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017, in St. Louis. Stockley is accused in the 2011 killing of Lamar Smith following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
Protesters march through West County Mall in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Des Peres, Mo. Stockley was acquitted on Friday, in the 2011 killing of Anthony Lamar Smith, a black man, following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
Protesters march through West County Mall in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Des Peres, Mo. Stockley was acquitted in the 2011 killing of a black man following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
A protester uses a small projector to project images on a house while marching in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in St. Louis. Stockley was acquitted in the 2011 killing of a black man following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
A protester stands on a traffic signal as a police helicopter circles overhead as demonstrators march in response to a not guilty verdict in the trial of former St. Louis police officer Jason Stockley Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in St. Louis. Stockley was acquitted in the 2011 killing of a black man following a high-speed chase. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) The Associated Press
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