Portland Police Protected a Trump Supporter After an Altercation at Friday's Protest

Portland protesters of President Donald Trump are outraged by the Portland Police Bureau's decision to deploy flash grenades and pepper spray on hundreds of demonstrators. Mayor Ted Wheeler has said he will take a closer look at the use of "less than lethal" weapons—but that he supports the police's actions.

Another choice by police officers on Jan. 20 is also drawing scrutiny.

As police attempted to clear crowds from downtown streets near Pioneer Courthouse Square, officers protected an apparent Trump supporter who reached for a gun after being punched in the head by an anti-Trump protester.

Cole Howard, a freelance photographer, watched the incident. He says that the Trump supporter reached for a side holster while surrounded by protesters, then walked with his family around the block to seek the protection of Portland police.

"There were some very upset protesters," Howard says, "and a lot of them weren't just arguing with the counter-protester, they were arguing with the police, saying, 'How dare you. This guy put a weapon on us and you're going to protect him?'"

The Portland Police Bureau declined to comment on the incident.

The incident occurred on a night of nationwide protests, and at least one shooting—in Seattle, outside a speech by right-wing agitator Milo Yiannopoulos.

Howard says he first saw the Trump supporter when he was following the protest, near the Nike store. He says he saw the man with a younger woman, who Howard initially thought was the man's girlfriend, but was told later it was possibly his daughter, and an older woman.

Related: Mayor Ted Wheeler stands by police use of stun grenades and tear gas on anti-Trump protesters.

He says the man was holding an American flag and some sort of pro-Trump sign and he was in verbal conflict with a few different protesters, who were being aggressive, and the man was yelling back at them.

"It didn't look at that point that there wasn't necessarily anything physical," Howard says.

Then, he says he saw a man in black clothing and a black mask come up from behind and punch the Trump supporter in the back of the head.

"He looked the fit for that stereotypical Black Bloc; he could've been anybody, but he ran up and punched the Trump supporter at the back of the head and instantly the Trump supporter went to his gun," Howard says.

Howard says it happened very quickly, and he would not have felt confirmed had he not captured a picture, showing the moment the Trump supporter reached for the gun.

"As he went for it, a bunch of people reacted, and he didn't end up unholstering it," Howard says. "There was a huge amount of conflict with him having a gun and going for it, and there was a massive amount of aggression from both sides," Howard says.

Though the man did not end up actually pulling the gun, Howard says he saw a protester say, 'He's carrying a gun,' to which the Trump supporter said, 'I carry a gun every single day—why should I have to apologize for that?'"

Afterwards, Howard says the protesters "were kind of harassing" the man with the gun as he walked down the block, but Howard says the man seemed more concerned about protecting the younger woman than he was about trying to fight, although he was yelling back.

Howard says the armed man and the protesters continued to march in lockstep, eventually stopping around the Nines Hotel, where there was a line of police officers.

That's when the Trump supporter and the two women went to the police, Howard says.

"They essentially said, 'Please protect us.' I didn't hear the exact wording, but you could tell that's what he was saying, and the police joined and there was verbal confrontation between protesters and the police surrounding him," Howard says.

Protesters were yelling at the officers for taking the Trump supporter's side and not asking for a firearm permit.

"The police continued to be very dismissive of the whole interaction, and more or less protecting the family," Howard says. "They more or less held their line, but they allowed the family and everybody to go behind them, and they definitely kept the protesters from coming near."

After photographer William Gagan, who freelances for WW, posted a photo of the Trump supporter behind the police line on Twitter, it was retweeted 344 times, with replies decrying the police response. (Gagan's tweet says the man pulled his gun, but that appears to be incorrect.)