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Portland Man Opens Fire on Racial Justice Protesters, Killing 1 and Injuring 4 Others

HeadlineFeb 22, 2022

In Portland, Oregon, a 43-year-old man is under investigation for a Saturday night shooting that left one person dead and five others wounded at a protest against police killings. Witnesses say Benjamin Jeffrey Smith confronted Black Lives Matter demonstrators, calling them “terrorists” before opening fire within 90 seconds of arriving on the scene. His bullets struck 60-year-old June Knightly in the head, killing her. Knightly was known as “T-Rex” to her friends and was a beloved fixture of Portland’s LGBTQ+ community and racial justice protests. Four others were injured by Smith’s handgun, before someone returned fire and injured Smith, sending him to the hospital in critical condition. Portland’s police have not said whether they will charge Smith with a crime; the police initially described the killing as a confrontation between an armed homeowner and armed protesters.

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