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American Morning
Riots Continue in Michigan for Second Night
Aired June 18, 2003 - 07:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go to Michigan now, where for a second straight night and into this morning hundreds of people have been rioting in the small city of Benton Harbor. The violence broke out after a man on a motorcycle was killed while being chased by police. Buildings were set on fire. The governor has declared a state of emergency.
Mark Albert from our affiliate, WWMT, has more from Benton Harbor.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARK ALBERT, CNN AFFILIATE WWMT REPORTER (voice-over): For the second night in a row, darkness ushered in a new wave of violence in Benton Harbor. Police in riot gear, dozens strong, flanked by flames and mobs.
Cheers for a crowd of hundreds who hurtled bottles and insulted officers.
CHIEF SAMUEL HARRIS, BENTON HARBOR POLICE: I'm shocked and upset and dismayed that we would treat our own property in our own city.
ALBERT: Benton Harbor Police Chief Sam Harris called the crowd "extremely violent," one that not only beat and shot several people, but torched homes with residents still inside, and would not let firefighters near.
HARRIS: They're the good guys. They're the guys that come save you when your house is on fire. And my citizens, my fellow citizens of Benton Harbor, are not allowing them to do it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's why we have maverick police officers who have a blatant disregard and disrespect for our culture, our heritage, our nationality and our existence!
ALBERT: Furious residents on Tuesday night demanded Benton Township trustees ban police chases, appoint a commission to oversee the 17-member department and fire the officer who chased 28-year-old Terrance Shurn. He crashed during a 100-mile-per-hour chase early Monday, one of three officer-involved deaths in the last three years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are some changes, some things that need to be changed in my policy, and I will change them.
HARRIS: We're going to take our city back for the decent people who live here. (END VIDEOTAPE)
ALBERT: Leaders here in Benton Harbor are now considering whether to issue a city-wide curfew tonight. But the main question is: Do they have enough officers to enforce it?
Also a possibility: bringing out the National Guard -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And can you explain to us even better how you go from one motorcycle chase to a city on fire?
ALBERT: Well, Daryn, that really was the straw that broke the camel's back, if you will, the latest event here that residents say that have caused them to take out their frustrations here in the streets and burn their own properties.
The residents at that township hall last night said that they want the police force to diversify. They want an independent commission to oversee the police department, and they want a ban on all police chases.
The city of Benton Harbor has such a ban, but Benton Township, which was actually the officer doing the chase, does not. And they say that that constitutes murder when a chase leads to a killing like this. There have been three in the last three years, and they want it stopped.
KAGAN: Mark Albert with WWMT, thank you for that report.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired June 18, 2003 - 07:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go to Michigan now, where for a second straight night and into this morning hundreds of people have been rioting in the small city of Benton Harbor. The violence broke out after a man on a motorcycle was killed while being chased by police. Buildings were set on fire. The governor has declared a state of emergency.
Mark Albert from our affiliate, WWMT, has more from Benton Harbor.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARK ALBERT, CNN AFFILIATE WWMT REPORTER (voice-over): For the second night in a row, darkness ushered in a new wave of violence in Benton Harbor. Police in riot gear, dozens strong, flanked by flames and mobs.
Cheers for a crowd of hundreds who hurtled bottles and insulted officers.
CHIEF SAMUEL HARRIS, BENTON HARBOR POLICE: I'm shocked and upset and dismayed that we would treat our own property in our own city.
ALBERT: Benton Harbor Police Chief Sam Harris called the crowd "extremely violent," one that not only beat and shot several people, but torched homes with residents still inside, and would not let firefighters near.
HARRIS: They're the good guys. They're the guys that come save you when your house is on fire. And my citizens, my fellow citizens of Benton Harbor, are not allowing them to do it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's why we have maverick police officers who have a blatant disregard and disrespect for our culture, our heritage, our nationality and our existence!
ALBERT: Furious residents on Tuesday night demanded Benton Township trustees ban police chases, appoint a commission to oversee the 17-member department and fire the officer who chased 28-year-old Terrance Shurn. He crashed during a 100-mile-per-hour chase early Monday, one of three officer-involved deaths in the last three years.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are some changes, some things that need to be changed in my policy, and I will change them.
HARRIS: We're going to take our city back for the decent people who live here. (END VIDEOTAPE)
ALBERT: Leaders here in Benton Harbor are now considering whether to issue a city-wide curfew tonight. But the main question is: Do they have enough officers to enforce it?
Also a possibility: bringing out the National Guard -- Daryn.
KAGAN: And can you explain to us even better how you go from one motorcycle chase to a city on fire?
ALBERT: Well, Daryn, that really was the straw that broke the camel's back, if you will, the latest event here that residents say that have caused them to take out their frustrations here in the streets and burn their own properties.
The residents at that township hall last night said that they want the police force to diversify. They want an independent commission to oversee the police department, and they want a ban on all police chases.
The city of Benton Harbor has such a ban, but Benton Township, which was actually the officer doing the chase, does not. And they say that that constitutes murder when a chase leads to a killing like this. There have been three in the last three years, and they want it stopped.
KAGAN: Mark Albert with WWMT, thank you for that report.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
