The post Tampa police chief on ‘ambush’ of officers: ‘We won’t take a knee,’ protests have not remained peaceful appeared first on Virus Reports.
]]>Florida’s Tampa Police Department will not “take a knee” for Black Lives Matter protesters who have not remained peaceful, Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan stated Thursday.
In an interview on “Fox & Friends” with hosts Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt, and Brian Kilmeade, Dugan said he believes that the country is at a “crossroads,” but that if protesters and residents are going to make enemies out of those sworn to serve and protect them, they better be prepared to “make friends with the criminals.”
HUNDREDS ‘AMBUSH’ TAMPA POLICE RESPONDING TO REPORT OF SHOTS FIRED, 2 OFFICERS INJURED, CHIEF SAYS
Early on Saturday morning, two of Dugan’s officers were injured while responding to a report of shots fired and a possible gunshot victim. However, when they arrived at the scene, a crowd of hundreds was there to greet them. As the officers searched for a possible victim, the massive group of people blocked their path and became aggressive.
According to Dugan, the mob surrounded officers, threw bottles and glass, and jumped on a police vehicle. Officers could not locate a victim.
“It’s an ambush. I have no other way to describe it,” Dugan told reporters in a news conference on Monday. “When there are that many people out there and clearly no one had been shot. It was just a set up to get the cops there.
“We have changed our protocols where we send at least two officers to any type of call that we’re going to. Whether it’s a delayed burglary or whatever. This incident we actually sent nine officers to and it was clearly just a set up to get the cops there and then surround them,” the chief explained on Thursday. “But, this is what we’re dealing with, you know?”
Dugan told the “Friends” hosts it felt like a no-win situation for his department.
“If we show up and take action, you know, we’re heavy-handed, you know, it’s ‘excessive force,'” he said. “You know, [with] these peaceful protests, demonstrations — they turn on a dime and they can turn on the cops very quickly.”
In addition, according to Dugan, prosecutors also aren’t “depicting the whole story and leaving the portions out that [don’t] fit their narrative” including the destruction of police property.
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“And, I think we’re running into a situation in this country where, you know, people are now so afraid they’re going to lose their job, that they’re not doing their job,” he noted.
“You know, I assure you that, you know, we are not going to take a knee. We are going to stand up. We are going to defend our city,” he concluded. “We are the guardians of the city. And, we have no [intention] of handing over the key to the city to these protesters who quite frankly are just not always peaceful.”
Fox News’ Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
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]]>The post Tampa Bay Buccaneers report coronavirus cases at training center appeared first on Virus Reports.
]]>Multiple people at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ training center in Tampa, Florida, have tested positive for the coronavirus, the NFL team said Saturday.
“We can confirm that there have been individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 at the AdventHealth Training Center,” the team said in a statement. “We immediately activated our COVID-19 Response Plan and vacated the affected areas, which will remain closed until extensive sanitization is completed.”
The Buccaneers did not say how many people tested positive, but it said the center would remain open and operational as the team prepared for the 2020 season scheduled to begin Sept. 13.
“The individuals who may have been exposed have already been notified and are following the established protocols, which include a 14-day quarantine period,” the Buccaneers said in a statement.
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ESPN reported Saturday that two players and an assistant coach were among those who tested positive.
The Florida Department of Health issued an advisory Saturday, suggesting people wear masks in public and encouraging those age 65 and older to limit their interactions outside their homes. It also asked Floridians to refrain from joining social gatherings of more than 50 people.
Florida reported its largest single-day increase in COVID-19 cases Tuesday with 2,783. The virus put a squeeze on ICU beds in the state with 26 hospitals throughout Florida reporting they had no intensive-care capacity for new patients.
The Buccaneers news came the same day the athletics department at South Carolina’s Clemson University reported that 28 of its student athletes and staff members have tested positive for the virus.
“Clemson has notified and isolated each of those individuals who tested positive for a period of at least 10 days,” the university said in a statement. “Close known contacts have also been asked to self-quarantine for at least 14 days. Most of the total cases have been asymptomatic, and none have required hospitalization.”
Also in Florida. the National Hockey League reported Friday that three of 11 players who tested positive for the virus are with the Tampa Bay Lightning, which is shutting down its training facility.
In Major League Baseball, the Philadelphia Phillies shut down its Clearwater, Florida, training center Friday after five players tested positive. The Toronto Blue Jays suspended its operations in Dunedin, Florida, after a player displayed symptoms of the coronavirus.
And the San Francisco Giants shuttered its Scottsdale, Arizona, training center after someone who had been there showed symptoms of the virus. The Texas Rangers said it would follow suit with its Surprise, Arizona, center as a precaution.
Juliette Arcodia
contributed.
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