ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Several fires were set in the streets of Rochester Sunday night following a march, not far from where the Rochester Police Department says a man was shot and killed by officers on Friday.
Video posted to Facebook shows the fires at the intersection of Jay and Child streets.
The fires were set following the death of Mark Gaskill. According to Rochester police, officers shot and killed him during a traffic stop on Glasser Street. A memorial marks the spot.
The RPD says that at around 6 p.m., a group gathered at Glasser and Masseth streets before a group of approximately 75-90 people marched in the area of Child and Campbell streets. By 9 p.m., police say approximately 50 protesters stopped at Child Street and Jay Street and set fire to three construction barrels in the middle of the road. The RPD says that the protesters then set fire to more debris in the road at Jay Street and Orchard Street, and as the fire began to grow, there were reports of a vehicle on fire.
Police say that by midnight, a group of around 20 to 25 protesters remaining at Jay and Orchard streets re-lit the previously burned vehicle.
The RPD says that no one was injured and there were no arrests.
Mayor Lovely Warren addressed what happened Sunday night, saying decisions were made on the ground in the interest of safety.
"That the car was empty, that it wasn't in danger of blowing up and that it was best to, because of all of the things going on, allow our employees and firefighters and all of the neighbors to be safe, and to go in when it was safe to do so," Warren said.
The police department released body camera video of Friday's incident. In it, officers can be heard saying Gaskin has a gun moments before they opened fire. The video does show the officers retrieving a weapon from the car following the shooting.
The car Gaskill was riding in was stopped following a shooting call moments earlier on Lyell Avenue. The incident is now under review by the office of the state attorney general.