Tri-Valley Protests, Businesses Board Up During National Unrest

TRI-VALLEY, CA — As protests spurred by George Floyd's death on May 25 continued this week across the country, demonstrations big and small were held throughout the Tri-Valley.

The protests turned out to be peaceful, though there were rumors that destructive outside groups and looters could infiltrate Tri-Valley protests and target local businesses. Those concerns were amplified after Walnut Creek's Broadway Plaza was targeted by looters Sunday night.

Most downtown Danville businesses hurriedly boarded up early in the week, though downtown Livermore remained unchanged. Some businesses in San Ramon and Dublin opted to shut down early and board up, and a handful of windows were boarded up along Main Street in Pleasanton, with messages promoting peace and activism scrawled in bright colors.

All entrances to Stoneridge Shopping Center in Pleasanton will remain blocked off until Monday, and Pleasanton police have closed roads leading to the mall overnight. City Center Bishop Ranch boarded up glass storefronts, blocked off entrances and hired security to keep watch.

Some Tri-Valley governments, and Contra Costa and Alameda counties enacted curfews due to looting concerns, though both counties announced Thursday plans to rescind their curfews a day before it was set to expire as protests wound down.

The East Bay also saw unusually high temperatures this week as a heat wave passed through NorCal.

In spite of the triple-digit heat, protesters turned out to Carnegie Park in Livermore Thursday afternoon. Dublin police shut down streets Monday to make way for hundreds of protesters, dozens gathered Tuesday and Wednesday in Danville and a crowd showed up to protest in San Ramon Wednesday.

The protests come after Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died last week after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white man, knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

Chauvin pinned Floyd down after arresting him following a call reporting his suspected use of a counterfeit bill at a store. Floyd said he could not breathe during the encounter and had no pulse when he was taken into an ambulance.

All four officers at the scene were fired. On Wednesday Chauvin was charged with second-degree murder and the other three officers on scene — Tou Thao, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane — were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and manslaughter.

See more:

• Danville Protests Continue In Honor Of George Floyd
• SEE: Downtown Pleasanton Boarded Up Amid Bay Area Lootings
• Alameda County Issues Curfew Beginning Monday Night
• Roads Leading To Stoneridge Mall Closed