State police warn of rumors of attempts to occupy state Capitol

Hundreds gathered at the Oregon State Capitol on Wednesday to protest the results of the presidential election as similar protests erupted in Washington, D.C., and around the nation.

What started in Salem as a peaceful prayer protest early in the day grew in size and conflict as the afternoon continued.

By the end of the day, police arrested and charged David Willis, 43, of Lincoln City, on suspicion of harassment and disorderly conduct. In an earlier incident, Willis, along with Washington-based Patriot Prayer founder Joey Gibson, was named in a lawsuit by the owner of Cider Riot in Portland who said Willis and others fought with customers, causing mayhem and physical injury to at least one person.

And Wednesday night, state police said they were hearing rumors that armed groups may attempt to occupy state capitols and warned the public of the consequences of such actions.

Cody Melby, 39, was arrested after police reported he attempted to enter the Oregon State Capitol with a firearm. 

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In a steady rain, organizers gathered on the Capitol grounds starting at about 9 a.m. to watch the broadcast of the congressional vote to certify the Electoral College votes from the November presidential election and declare President-elect Joe Biden the winner.

Protesters included members of Oregon Women for Trump, Proud Boys, various religious groups and other supporters of President Donald Trump.  

But just before 2 p.m., organizers were met by counter-protesters who said they were members of Antifa. The protesters, many of whom were dressed in black, marched toward the Capitol from Salem's Riverfront Park.

Salem police officers tried in vain to prevent the two groups from clashing. In a tweet, Salem police said the marchers refused to listen to "repeated audible commands" from law enforcement to stay off the street and disperse.

The two groups briefly shouted at each other from opposite sides of Court Street before several physical altercations began. Smoke and other non-lethal munitions were fired.

At one point, a firework exploded near several Oregon State Police officers as they exited the west side of the Capitol.

Salem police and Marion County Sheriff's crowd control team formed a line on the west side of the Capitol. 

One protester addressed a police officer: "This has been a peaceful assembly all day long. You guys allowed Antifa in here and then it stopped being peaceful."

Salem Police tweeted the department's special teams were supporting Oregon State Police's crowd management teams addressing the "mutual combat by opposing groups occurring on the Capitol grounds."

Unlawful assembly

At 2 p.m. Oregon State Police declared the protests at the Oregon Capitol an unlawful assembly.

Protesters were ordered to disperse and warned that if they did not do so, police may arrest or use force against them. In a tweet, state police said that force could include "impact munitions and riot control agents."

Later, State police officials arrested Willis and charged him with harassment and disorderly conduct. State police Captain Tim Fox said the investigation is continuing and more charges are possible after consultation with the Marion County District Attorney.

Salem police closed several streets in the vicinity of the state Capitol and asked residents to avoid the area.

By 3 p.m., crowds dwindled to about 50 protesters; many stood across the street from the Capitol building waving American flags.

But at 6 p.m., state troopers found a man attempting to get into the state capitol. Troopers arrested Melby, 39, on suspicion of trespassing while in possession of a firearm. 

At about 7:45 p.m., state police sent out a news alert stating that they'd heard rumors that armed groups may try to occupy state capitols. 

"The security of the capitol is our priority. If you are considering any unlawful activities at the Oregon State Capitol or surrounding areas, please reconsider," Oregon State Police said in the alert. "The safety of our community members, Capitol occupants, and police officers is paramount."

Watching D.C.

Earlier in the day, demonstrators in Salem stood in the rain as a projector broadcast the congressional vote to certify the presidential election results in Washington, D.C.  

Meanwhile, chaos erupted in the nation's capital as Trump supporters swarmed the Capitol building, prompting Vice President Mike Pence to be swept to a secure location and the Senate chamber to be evacuated.

A woman was shot inside the Capitol and taken to a hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. The Pentagon said the Washington, D.C., National Guard was mobilized to support local law enforcement. By late afternoon, 13 people – all from outside the area – had been arrested.

Back in Salem, participants listened to speakers, prayed, sang a song and marched around the state Capitol buildings. 

“We wanted to stand with our patriot brothers and sisters that are standing in D.C.," said Ana Drouin, of Portland, a member of Oregon Women for Trump. "We wanted to make sure that every capitol had a showing of people so that they could know, ‘Yeah, we’ve got millions in D.C. but there are still thousands of people in every state that care about what happened.' "

She and others at the rally repeated unfounded allegations of election fraud. Drouin said she wants federal officials to investigate to assure Americans their votes can be trusted.

"If we cannot trust our vote anymore, our republic is at stake," she said. "We know there’s a chance we might not end up with Trump as our president, but we’ve got to fix the problem — they can’t just say ‘Biden’s our president, we’re not going to look at this fraud.' "

Speaker Graciela Cargni, of Portland, said her family fled communist Cuba in the 1960s. "Everything that's happening now in the states is very scary to me and my family." 

"We have got to stay together, we have got to fight for our country," she told the cheering crowd. 

State Sen. Dallas Heard, R-Roseburg, spoke to the crowd as well.

“Don’t let any of these punks from that stone temple over there ever tell you they are better than any of you," he said, pointing to the Capitol building. "Trust me, I work with these fools, none of them are half as good as any of you. And you need to bring the power to them. Don’t be violent, take action, trust in God and take down these fools in 2022.”

Mike and Debbie Davis, of Beaver, called the congressional proceedings in which Republicans challenged the election results "a fight for our freedoms and our rights as American citizens."

"We are out here to save our presidency and our country," Mike Davis said. 

Just before the clash with counter-protesters, demonstrators gathered around the projector once more to listen to Trump's address: "It was a landslide election and everyone knows it ... but you have to go home now, we have to have peace."

But protesters said they were not going home just yet. 

Buildings closed

In an unusual move, operations at the state Capitol were halted Wednesday as officials braced for crowds and "potential damage" during the planned rallies.

"As a precautionary measure, operations within the Capitol will be closed tomorrow," Oregon Legislature officials said in an email to Capitol staff Tuesday afternoon. "In an abundance of caution, Oregon State Police urges all capitol occupants to remain away from the building tomorrow."

In a tweet on Tuesday, Secretary of State Shemia Fagan added the Public Service building at 255 Capitol Street NE and the Archives building at 800 Summer Street NE would also be closed to both the public and staff.

Officials from the Marion County Sheriff's Office said the courthouse would be closed, the District Attorney's Office operated remotely and Courthouse Square also was closed. 

Salem protests: Multiple arrests after right-wing and anti-fascist rallies

Concerns about violence in Salem

Violence at recent protests in Salem had officials concerned locally. 

On Dec. 21, protesters opposing closures related to COVID-19 broke glass doors on the west side of the Capitol building, tore tarps from the marble reliefs on the front steps, and tried to get into the building during a special legislative session. The protest resulted in at least six arrests. 

New Year's Day protest:Protesters clash in downtown Salem Friday night

On New Year's Day, police declared an unlawful assembly during a downtown Salem rally leading police to use non-lethal munitions including flash bangs to disperse the crowd after separating opposing groups of protesters. 

For Wednesday's event, Salem police officials said while protests at the Capitol are under Oregon State Police's jurisdiction, they can provide assistance if requested.

"The assistance may include patrol, crowd management teams and SWAT officers deployed to the Capitol or surrounding areas," police officials said in a release.

Officials urged residents to avoid the area around the Capitol due to possible traffic disruptions. 

USA TODAY reporter Will Carless contributed to this story. 

Virginia Barreda is the breaking news and public safety reporter for the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at 503-399-6657 or at vbarreda@statesmanjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.