Six protesters injured by a car during NYC protests
A woman was later arrested and charged for the incident
Six protesters were injured on Friday in midtown Manhattan when a vehicle drove through the street, according to New York City Police Department.
The Associated Press reports that protesters were at the intersection of 39th Street and Third Avenue at 4 p.m. when the car went through.
Tom Ella, who was documenting the demonstration, said “It just starts high-speed, just plowing through people.”
The New York Fire Department said six people were transported by ambulance to local hospitals and that injuries weren’t life-threatening.
The protest was started to bring attention to the hunger strike by ICE detainees in jail in New Jersey.
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The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the a woman was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment. She was later identified as 52-year-old Kathleen Casillo.
Casillo stayed at the scene and was later taken in to be questioned by police officers. She was released from custody and will appear in court.
In a video captured by Ella, a small group of protesters were seen gathering around the black BMW sedan on 39th Street as it slowly approached the intersection. Then the car then accelerated, knocking into the small group blocking the car.
“Suddenly you hear the engine roar, you see them accelerate. Just watching them actually hit people, it’s traumatizing, it’s horrifying,” Ella said.
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Sofia Vickerman of Denver, Colorado who participated in the protest said, “I hear people screaming in the front, I look behind me, the woman is plowing through. I see bodies flying.”
According to officers, a protester was charged with disorderly conduct and obstruction of governmental administration for interfering with ambulance workers at the scene.
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