Seattle police say many May Day troublemakers previously known to police

Seattle police say many of those arrested in the Wednesday’s May Day melee were also involved in last year’s violent demonstrations, and at least some came from out of town to cause problems.

The Seattle City Attorney’s Office filed misdemeanor charges Thursday against six people arrested during the clash with police. Three others who were arrested posted bail overnight and will be considered for charges at a later time.

Police leaders again praised officers and the department’s handling of a day of demonstrations that ended with 17 arrests and eight officers injured downtown.

While officers deployed pepper spray and flash bombs to help control and break up the increasingly aggressive crowd, Capt. Chris Fowler, who led the May Day force, said at a news briefing Thursday police used extreme restraint and “minimal force” to make necessary arrests.

“At one point when the crowd became assaultive on officers, we reacted to ensure that the officers were safe, the general citizens were safe and used the force necessary to do that,” he said.

The clashes came as several hundred demonstrators marched from Capitol Hill downtown. Fowler said the strategy was to allow them to march even though they didn’t have a permit, as long as they remained peaceful.

“Our city is pretty big on First Amendment rights expressing your rights and allowing that to occur. In fact, we give it escort. But when the behavior starts to turn criminal we’re going to take action against those individuals that are committing criminal acts.”

Police speculate a number of violent demonstrators traveled to Seattle specifically to cause problems, getting reports of a large van heading south on I-5 after a clash near Seattle Central Community College.

“There are those that are coming from outside the city to incite this violence,” Fowler said.