Authorities in the Los Angeles suburb of Anaheim, California, have asked for a federal investigation into a pair of weekend police shootings that have sparked days of protests.
Police Chief John Welter said officers made 24 arrests after a protest that began at a City Council meeting Tuesday night turned violent, with demonstrators breaking windows and throwing rocks and bottles at police. Police responded with batons and non-lethal "bean-bag" and pepper spray projectiles, he said.
Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait told reporters Wednesday that he has asked the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles to investigate the fatal shootings of two men by police, but said violent protests "will simply not be tolerated in our city."
"When the investigations are concluded, we will have a clear and complete understanding of these incidents," Tait said. "At that time, we will have additional public dialogue about any actions that need to be taken. ... We will not, however, accept any violent protests, vandalism or arson perpetrated under the guise of public protest."
Welter said police estimated about two-thirds of the Tuesday night crowd of more than 1,000 "wasn't from Anaheim," but 20 of the 24 arrested were.
"Our job is to protect property and life. Our job isn't to stand back in the back and let anarchists or rioters damage property and injure people," he said. "And if we don't do that, you'll be the first one criticizing me for where were the police, how come they weren't out there protecting property and people."
Those arrested face charges ranging from failure to disperse to assault with a deadly weapon. One man was found with a handgun, Welter said.
Tuesday night's demonstration began with protests both inside and outside the Anaheim City Hall, where the City Council was meeting. Demonstrators disrupted the meeting and blocked access to the building, forcing a delay in the session as police moved to clear emergency exits, Welter said.
The protest moved to downtown streets, where demonstrators blocked a major intersection and refused to move, Welter said.
"After allowing the crowd to protest for a couple of hours, the violence escalated to the point where an unlawful assembly was declared and the streets were then cleared of protesters," he said.
And Anaheim Police Sgt. Bob Dunn told CNN's "Newsroom" that once the protest was broken up, "The crowds kind of moved around, sometimes fighting between each other, breaking windows and lighting fires and trash cans."
The protests began Saturday, after the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Manuel Diaz, whom police described as a gang member, CNN affiliate KCAL reported. Cell phone video taken at the scene and posted to YouTube showed residents confronting police officers as they ordered bystanders to back farther away from the man lying face-down on a lawn, before they cordoned off the area with yellow police tape.
Dozens of people surrounded the police officers; some threw objects at them and rolled a burning trash bin in their direction, according to CNN affiliate KTLA. Police responded with rubber bullets and pepper spray. One demonstrator showed the television news station bruises she said she got from rubber bullets fired at the crowd.
At one point, police lost control of a dog, which attacked and bit at least one person. Welter has apologized for the dog attack and said the city will cover the cost of treatment.
On Sunday, protesters jammed the Anaheim Police Department to complain about shootings involving police officers. Later the same night -- in a separate incident -- police shot and killed a second man, whom they also considered a gang member, when he allegedly fired on police, CNN affiliate KABC reported.
On Monday, hundreds held a vigil for Diaz, chanting in Spanish, according to KTLA.
Dunn said Wednesday that the shooting took place when officers in the "high crime gang neighborhood" attempted to stop three men, who ran off.
"It was during that foot pursuit that the officer-involved shooting occurred," he said. "The circumstances surrounding that shooting are under investigation by the district's attorney."
A lawyer representing Diaz's family, Diana Lopez, said Diaz had not committed a crime and was unarmed when he was shot, KTLA reported. Lopez said the family plans to file a multimillion-dollar lawsuit over the death.
KABC and KCAL reported that police also said Diaz was unarmed but was throwing unknown objects while running from police.
Police in Anaheim were involved in six shootings in 2012, all but one of which were fatal, according to KTLA.