Three people were arrested and charged with inciting a riot and battery of law enforcement officers when a vigil over the police shooting of a Pride Alliance leader Scout Schultz turned violent Monday night at Georgia Tech.
One police vehicle was set ablaze and two officers received minor injuries and went to the hospital, AJC.com reports. It wasn’t initially clear if the three arrested were students at Georgia Tech or not.
Schultz’s parents released a statement on Monday night asking for calm and peaceful protests to honor Schultz’s legacy: “Answering violence with violence is not the answer. Our goal is to work diligently to make positive change at Georgia Tech in an effort to ensure a safer campus for all students.” Schultz was a 21-year-old engineering student from Lilburn who was gunned down by campus police late Saturday night. She had been the head of the Georgia Pride Alliance, a group that advocates for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual individuals.
The GBI is still investigating in the shooting. According to initial police reports, Schultz had a knife and refused commands to stop. The family’s lawyer, Chris Stewart, said Schultz was carrying a small utility tool and the blade was not out. Scout’s father, Bill Schultz, said that the only question that matters right now is why the police used lethal force. “Why did you have to shoot?” he asked at a news conference on Monday.
Father of #ScoutSchultz to campus police: “Why did you have to shoot?” #gatech @wabenews pic.twitter.com/kYxh4N2UXv
— Lisa Hagen (@TwitrHagen) September 18, 2017
Monday evening’s vigil began peacefully, but then about 50 people left the vigil and marched towards the college;s police headquarters. Around 9:30 p.m., Tech students were told to “shelter in place” due to “violent protests” on campus, reports AJC.com, and officers from Atlanta Police and Georgia State University were called to assist.
GTENS ALERT: Stay inside due to violent protests on campus. Avoid Hemphill Avenue. Stay inside until told otherwise.
— Georgia Tech (@GeorgiaTech) September 19, 2017
Chad Miller, a Tech alumnus who took part in the march told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he saw a police car erupt into flames and thought maybe tear gas had been deployed. He saw one man throwing up and coughing, he thought it might have been a police officer.
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