Authorities report that they arrested three people during an anti-ICE protest in Tucson on Wednesday evening.
The Tucson Police Department stated the protest outside an ICE office began peacefully.
What happened at ICE protest in Tucson?
However, the protestors eventually blocked a road, threw paint-filled balloons at masked security personnel, and scribbled anti-ICE graffiti, according to the Associated Press.
According to the source, a security officer sprayed a chemical irritant at protestors after they approached with masks and homemade shields.
According to the Associated Press, a protestor launched even more chemical irritant at security agents and then threw a block at one of them. The unidentified security personnel stepped aside.
Authorities respond to ICE protest in Tucson
The Arizona Department of Public Safety responded to Wednesday’s ICE protest, stating that it welcomes peaceful assembly but will crack down on criminal activities.
Timothy Courchaine, the United States Attorney for the District of Arizona, stated that while people have the constitutional right to peaceful protest, many entities abuse that privilege.
“There are entities who are using that right as a cover to perpetrate violence, rioting and destruction in our streets,” Courchaine said in a Thursday announcement. “That behavior cannot be tolerated.”