Richmond Police Chief Will Smith got emotional during a press conference after the second night of protests in the city. Chief Smith says last night protesters set fire to a few buildings, including a multi-family residence that was occupied by a child in the 300 block of West Broad Street. As fire crews were arriving, Smith says protesters blocked the engine from reaching the fire. “When you take a legitimate issue and hijack it for unknown reasons, that is unacceptable to me, it’s unacceptable to the Richmond Police Department, unacceptable to the city of Richmond,” said Smith. While choking up, Smith said Firefighters were fortunate enough to make it inside the structure to rescue the child and family. The hijacking to which Chief Smith referred was the actions of rioters whose behavior went beyond the peaceful protests organized following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
