What 400 videos on social media say about police tactics during protests
As protests denouncing police brutality against unarmed Black people spread to thousands of cities, it was videos of police violence - this time, directed at protesters - that went viral.
Clips showed officers launching tear gas canisters at protesters' heads, shooting pepper spray from moving vehicles and firing foam bullets into crowds.
ProPublica looked at nearly 400 social media posts showing police responses to protesters and found troubling conduct by officers in at least 184 of them. In 59 videos, pepper spray and tear gas were used improperly; in a dozen others, officers used batons to strike noncombative demonstrators; and in 87 videos, officers punched, pushed and kicked retreating protesters, including a few instances in which they used an arm or knee to exert pressure on a protester's neck.
To see ProPublica's full online report, click here.