Sheriff Kyle L. Kirchmeier issued a press release two days ago saying, "The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requested the Morton County Sheriff's Department to assist them in removing any trespassers who enter Corps land to the north of the main camp area."
This action resulted in a journalist Erin Schrode being shot with a rubber bullet and knocked to the ground. She accidentally filmed herself being shot while she was interviewing a water protector on the far side of the Cantapeta Creek. Schrode was no where near the protectors, who were standing in freezing water to protest the assembly of riot police on sacred lands; lands currently under protection by the Department of Justice from any further desecration.
In a moving statement of her Facebook page, Schrode describes the experience.
I was shot by militarized police WHILE interviewing a peaceful man at Standing Rock live on camera. I woke up this morning with the thought that I may have that very footage - and broke down in reliving the 40-second horror before my own eyes. Warning: it's very very difficult to watch and sent me into quivers and tears, even without the compounding historic trauma that Native Americans face.
The land is located east of ND Highway1806 and the Backwater Bridge at the confluence of the Cannonball River. The Sheriff wanted to stop access to sacred lands currently under Federal jurisdiction.
In addition to the journalist being shot, water protectors were sprayed with an unknown irritating white substance that turned their skin red and was extremely painful.
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