Hundreds gathered in Boulder, Colorado’s University Hill on Saturday night, prompting police to disperse the big party, Boulder police said on Saturday. It is estimated that 500 to 800 people were present at the height of the incident, according to authorities.
CBS Denver reports that members of the SWAT team helped the police, who used a siren and gas to stop the event. Boulder’s police chief, Maris Herold, told reporters about the use of tear gas in two cylinders. Herold added that no rubber bullets were used as far as she knew.
The crowd turned violent, however, and some policemen were injured when bricks and stones were thrown at them, Boulder police told CBS Denver. A fire truck was damaged and a car overturned.
Around 9 pm, everyone dispersed, leaving broken glass and debris on the streets. Some residents cleaned up the mess.
No arrests were made from 5 pm to 9 pm, and Herold said during a news conference that he believed “it would not be considered best practice to send police officers” to the crowd. Instead, the police department is relying on images from the body camera, which will be released after an investigation.
An unidentified man told CBS Denver that the party and its subsequent confrontation with the police were about to take place. “When we are all caged for months, there will be an explosion, and this was the explosion,” said the man.
The University of Colorado Boulder issued a statement condemning the party. “Any student found responsible for acts of violence against law enforcement or rescue workers will be removed from CU Boulder and not readmitted,” tweeted the University.
“When health officials and the police referred violations of the public health order to our student conduct office, CU Boulder responded quickly and imposed discipline when the violations were established,” continued the University. “Disciplinary actions include provisional campus exclusions and 45 suspensions so far this academic year. We will continue to take these steps to make it clear that protecting our community and our campus is of the utmost importance and that we will not tolerate such violations.”
The 12th District Judicial District Attorney’s Office issued a statement to CBS Denver calling the party “shameful”.
“The Public Prosecutor’s Office will work closely with the Boulder Police Department to determine the identities of people who damaged private property and attacked the first respondents because they should be held fully responsible for their outrageous actions,” noted prosecutor Michael Dougherty.
The police will be analyzing images from the camera of the scene’s body. THE Boulder Police Department is encouraging anyone with information or social media images from the party to come forward.