A disabled veteran in Portland, Oregon, is hospitalized with multiple serious injuries after a group of armed Black Lives Matter protesters attacked and beat him. Portland Police Bureau officials reportedly received several calls about the violent acts of the BLM protesters on May 5.
Joe Hall, a 53-year-old home handyman, a crowd of BLM protesters armed with AR-15s and AK-47 surrounded his vehicle and then attacked him when he got out of his work truck, FOX 12 Portland reported. He said he was driving through the area where a BLM protest was underway while moving from a completed job to his next assignment. The crowd stopped his vehicle and those of others as they blocked the roadway.
Meanwhile at a Protest in Portland pic.twitter.com/S22mTDyaG6
— PapaChiCha (@Ceefus) May 7, 2021
“All of a sudden these agitators come out, screaming, pounding on my truck,” Hall told Fox 12. He said he attempted to drive around the group but stopped and got out when he thought he hit something.
“By this time I’ve got five people surrounding my vehicle, AR-15s, AK-47s,” the disabled veteran who served in the Army and Marine Corps. “I pulled my .38 out of my right pocket and pointed it at the ground and told them if a weapon points at me again, I will shoot to eliminate the threat.”
Antifa death squads march through residential streets in Portland brandishing rifles. They point them at a motorist, causing him to draw on them in return. He's beaten to the ground and his gun is stolen. He offers that he's a disabled Marine. pic.twitter.com/L0nTTKuE7t
— Alan Bings (@AlanBings) May 6, 2021
After pulling his pistol, someone tackled him and took his gun away. He said the group began kicking and hitting him.
Hall said he suffered a “partially collapsed left lung, two lower vertebrae fractured,” and five broken ribs, a broken collar bone, and head trauma, the Portland Fox affiliate reported.
The veteran said he stood his ground and would do it again.
A resident of the local neighborhood told the Fox reporters, “It looked like he was face down and then people were kneeling on top of him.”
Hall said he thought he would die during the savage attack. He asked why Portland police didn’t respond after they received multiple calls about the violent nature of the protest.
#Portland #PDX https://t.co/SS0hrLIf0G
— Shane B. Murphy (@shanermurph) May 7, 2021
Social media posts reported Antifa and BLM activists attacked multiple motorists, smashed windows of vehicles, and slashed their tires.
Portland police officials said their officers arrived after the large protest group had moved away. By the time they arrived, there was nothing for them to do but fill out paperwork.
“Portland Police attempted to collect as many statements as possible from those involved,” Portland Police Bureau officials said in a written statement. “Officers will document as much of the incidents as witnesses share and will attempt to gather available evidence, including video for follow-up on any criminal allegations.”
Story cited here.
