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Richmond police break up a crowd to save Confederate statue

Richmond police declared Sunday night's gathering near the statue to Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart unlawful and ordered demonstrators to leave Monument Avenue.
Credit: AP
FILE - In this June 8, 2020 file photo an inspection crew from the Virginia Department of General Services takes measurements as they inspect the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue in Richmond, Va. Six property owners along Monument Avenue in Virginia's capital city filed a lawsuit Monday, June 15, 2020 seeking to stop Gov. Ralph Northam's administration from removing the towering statue. (AP Photo/Steve Helber, file)

RICHMOND, Va. — Police in Virginia’s capital city declared an unlawful assembly and broke up a gathering of protestors accused of attempting to pull down another Confederate monument. 

Richmond police declared Sunday night's gathering near the statue to Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart unlawful and ordered demonstrators to leave the area along Monument Avenue around 9:30 p.m. 

A line of police in riot gear then moved in to encircle the monument, and were accused of deploying chemical agents against demonstrators. 

Multiple Confederate monuments in Richmond have been rallying points and sites of clashes with police following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

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