Changes

A '''race riotseries of demonstrations''' protesting the killing of black motorist ''' took place on [[February 24Wendel Blackwell]], ''' by Deputy [[1975Doug Raines]] took place on the grounds of the [[Escambia County Sheriff's Office]] after nearly 500 African-Americans gathered to protest in February [[Escambia County Sheriff|Sheriff]] [[Royal Untreiner]]'s refusal to discipline Deputy [[Doug Raines]], who had shot and killed a young black motorist, [[Wendel Blackwell]], on [[December 22]], [[19741975]]. Untreiner said the shooting was justifiable because Blackwell possessed a handgun, but some eyewitnesses claimed Raines had planted the gun after the fact.

Several Blackwell had been shot in the head and killed by Raines on [[December 22]], [[1974]]. It was deemed a justifiable homicide by officials, because Blackwell had apparently possessed a firearm, but members of the black community wanted [[Escambia County Sheriff|Sheriff]] [[Royal Untreiner]] to suspend Raines pending a full investigation. When Untreiner refused, several local [[civil rights]] leaders, including [[B. J. Brooks]] of the [[NAACP]] and [[H. K. Matthews]] of the [[Southern Christian Leadership Conference]], organized demonstrations in [[downtown Pensacola]], boycotted local stores, and met with Governor [[Reubin Askew]] to discuss the situation. Nightly protests held at the Sheriff's Department on [[Leonard Street|Leonard]] and [[E Street]]s grew in intensity over the course of three weeks.

On [[February 24]], a crowd of nearly 500 gathered outside the Sheriff's headquarters and began repeating protest chants. Rev. [[Jimmie Lee Savage]] reportedly led demonstrators in the chant, "Two, four, six, eight, who shall we incarcerate? Untreiner, Raines, the whole damn bunch!"

Sheriff Untreiner, apparently hearing protesters chanting the word "assassinate" instead of "incarcerate," ordered the crowd to disband. When they did not leave the premises immediately, he sent seventy deputies with nightclubs into their midst.

In the ensuing melee15-minute confrontation, several protestors were at least one person was injured. Thirty-four adults (including Matthews and Brooks) and thirteen juveniles were arrested on misdemeanor charges of unlawful assembly and malicious trespass. Three days later, felony extortion counts were added to the Matthews and Brooks charges, due to the alleged "assassinate" chant.