Berkeley probes 'hands-off' police response to protest chaos

(AP) — University of California, Berkeley police took a hands-off approach to protesters on the campus last week when violent rioters caused chaos when they overtook a largely peaceful protest against a right-wing speaker.

Last week's protest featured "Black Bloc" tactics employed by mask-wearing protesters dressed head-to-toe in dark clothing and using crude weapons to vandalize property.

While officers largely stood to the side, about 150 people labeled "agitators" by Berkeley police used metal rods, Molotov cocktails and commercial-grade fireworks to overwhelm police and smash bank branch and storefront windows in downtown Berkeley.

Only one person was arrested in the mayhem that injured six people — prompting criticism of training for campus police at the entire University of California system that emphasizes officer restraint and patience during protests in the name of protecting students' free speech rights.

Mogulof countered that a mass effort by officers to target the 150 violent protesters mixed in with a much larger group of peaceful protesters would not have worked and could have turned the incident into a tragedy.

The University of California responded with a report recommending 49 police tactic changes which were later adopted throughout the university system and urged campus officer to protect students' peaceful protest rights.