DURHAM, N.C. (AP) - Investigators are working to identify and charge protesters who toppled a nearly century-old Confederate statue in front of a North Carolina government building, the sheriff said Tuesday.
Durham County Sheriff Mike Andrews issued a statement that investigators are using video footage to identify those responsible for toppling the statue during a rally Monday night.
Law enforcement officers took video throughout the protest but didn't intervene as protesters brought out a ladder, climbed up to attach a rope and then pulled the bronze Confederate soldier from its pedestal. After it fell, some began kicking the statue, while others took photos standing or sitting on it. The protest was in response to violence and a death at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the weekend.
Andrews said his staff met with community leaders before the Durham demonstration, and he was aware of the potential for vandalism - but also the risk of injuries if deputies moved in.
"Collectively, we decided that restraint and public safety would be our priority," he said, noting that his office was recently challenged in court over arrests of demonstrators at public meetings. "As the Sheriff, I am not blind to the offensive conduct of some demonstrators nor will I ignore their criminal conduct."
The Confederate Soldiers Monument, dedicated in 1924, stood in front of an old courthouse building that serves as local government offices.