Walnut Creek Protest For Miles Hall Closes Downtown Roads

WALNUT CREEK, CA — A "big" demonstration for Miles Hall, a 23-year-old Black man who was shot and killed by Walnut Creek police last year, was set to begin at 1 p.m. Saturday. The demonstration, End Racism and Hate in Walnut Creek, would shut down traffic downtown.

Amid smokey skies and poor air quality for sensitive groups, demonstrators for the Black Lives Matter movement were determined to take to the streets, according to the Justice for Miles Hall Facebook page.

"MASK UP and SHOW UP for Justice for Miles Hall," read a Saturday morning post on Facebook. "Show up to grieve for Jacob Blake. Show for all the BIPOC souls we have lost and for their grieving families and communities. Show up for yourself. Show up for your neighbors. Show up for Miles."

The Facebook post indicated that the starting point for the rally was the Broadway Plaza Main Fountain and from there picketers would march by True Food Kitchen and loop to the Apple Store in the Broadway Plaza.

"Walnut Creek Police Department Advising of road closures in the downtown area starting at noon today due to a planned demonstration," police said Saturday. "Businesses will be open, but traffic may be impacted."

Jacob Blake is a 29-year-old Black man who was shot several times in the back by police in Kenosha, Wisconsin Sunday. He sustained multiple injuries and was handcuffed to his hospital bed Friday, CNN reported.

Hall died of his injuries in June 2, 2019 after he was shot by police while he was having a mental health episode. Hall reportedly had a steel rod in his hands, variously described as a garden tool and a crowbar, and wouldn't respond to police commands to drop it.

For those that don’t know, a classmate of mine, Miles Hall, was murdered by Walnut Creek PD during a mental health crisis last year. The officers haven’t been fired or charged.https://t.co/H4COdnfDta
— Steven☭ (@sjl8n97) August 29, 2020