SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has activated the Utah National Guard after protesters angry over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis turned violent during a demonstration at which some participants carried rifles in Salt Lake City.
Herbert says in a tweet that the Guard will help control “the escalating situation” in the downtown area following the unrest Saturday afternoon.
The protest started out peacefully, but degenerated into violence. A group of people flipped over a police car and lit it on fire. Some demonstrators smashed eggs and wrote graffiti on the walls of the Salt Lake City police station. Others marched through downtown to the state Capitol.
Some people in the protest openly carried rifles, which is legal in Utah.
