The Pennsylvania National Guard was deployed to Philadelphia Tuesday as the city braces for a second night of violent riots after tense confrontations between angry demonstrators and police hours after two officers shot and killed a Black man.

Several hundred guardsmen will assist local agencies in “protecting life, property and the right to peacefully assemble and protest,” Lt. Col. Keith Hickox said in a statement Tuesday. “We are able to conduct operations in support of civil authorities to enhance local law enforcement’s ability to provide continued public safety and critical infrastructure security.”

The move by Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, to activate the guard is a stark difference from other Democratic governors who have been hesitant or slow to mobilize troops in response to unfolding unrest.

The Philadelphia Police Department will also beef up its presence across the city in anticipation of possible unrest over the death of Walter Wallace Jr., 27, city leaders said.

“For today and this evening, we anticipate the chance of additional incidents of civil unrest and, as such, we will be taking additional steps to ensure order,” Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said during a news conference along with Mayor Jim Kenney and city leaders.

The city will increase the number of officers at “key locations” within the city to respond to any reports of violence, she said. Officials have also asked law enforcement agencies outside the city to help bolster personnel, Outlaw said.

Specifics regarding the number of officers and locations of where they will be placed were not released.

“We were hoping that we won’t have any repeat of we’ve seen last night and we’re taking every precaution that we can,” Kenney said.

Wallace, who struggled with mental health issues, was shot Monday by two officers responding to a domestic call about someone with a weapon. He was armed with a knife and refused to drop it, police said. Each officer fired approximately seven rounds, officials said.

It was not clear how many times Wallace was hit.

The shooting ignited outrage among residents and prompted hundreds to take to the streets in protest.

The gathering turned violent. About 30 officers were injured, including one who was “intentionally run over” by a pickup truck. Some officers were pelted with objects and 91 people were arrested.

Outlaw said eight police vehicles were damaged, including one that was set on fire.

“This completely caught us off guard,” she said of the unrest.

In a joint statement, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., denounced Wallace’s death and the unrest that followed.

“Walter Wallace’s life, like too many others’, was a Black life that mattered —  to his mother, to his family, to his community, to all of us,” the statement said. “At the same time, no amount of anger at the very real injustices in our society excuses violence. Attacking police officers and vandalizing small businesses, which are already struggling during a pandemic, does not bend the moral arc of the universe closer to justice.”

Outlaw said the department has not determined when police body camera footage of the shooting will be released.

People walk out of a damaged store Tuesday in Philadelphia after a protest over the death of Walter Wallace, a Black man who was killed by police in Philadelphia. Police shot and killed the 27-year-old Monday on a Philadelphia street after yelling at him to drop his knife, sparking violent protests that police said injured 30 officers and led to dozens of arrests. (AP Photo/Michael Perez)

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Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner reportedly said he hopes that his office will release the footage, but that he would need to discuss it with Outlaw and other city leaders. In a news conference Tuesday afternoon, he pledged that his office will conduct an impartial investigation, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

“We are not out to cover for anybody. We are not out to get anybody,” Krasner said.

In his three years in office, Kranser has charged two police officers over misconduct. Both cases are pending. No Philadelphia police officers have been charged for an on-duty shooting in two decades, according to the newspaper.

Calls from Fox News to the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police, the union that represents rank-and-file officers, were not returned.

In anticipation of more unrest, businesses across the city were boarding up windows or closing early.

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Several were damaged Monday night, including 10 CVS Health stores, a company spokeswoman told Fox News. In response, all CVS stores in the city will close at 7 p.m. “out of an abundance of caution.”

“Thankfully, no employees were hurt,” the spokeswoman said. “We’re working to repair the damage and will reopen stores as soon as it is safe to do.”

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Source: https://www.foxnews.com/us/philadelphia-braces-unrest

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Legal challenges to governors’ coronavirus shutdown orders are piling up nationwide, putting state leaders on the defensive as citizens and businesses itching to get back to normal take their arguments to court — in some cases succeeding at voiding the governors’ actions.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court, for example, struck down Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ “safer at home” order on the grounds that his administration did not have the power to unilaterally impose the restrictions without the input of the state legislature. Evers Monday gave up his effort to reimpose statewide rules to slow the coronavirus’ spread after it became clear he would not be able to come to an agreement with Republican lawmakers.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE 

“The Republicans made it very clear they don’t believe a statewide approach is the right way to go at this point in time,” he said. “It doesn’t make a lot of sense spending a lot of time doing something we know isn’t going to be successful.”

Wisconsin’s Republican-led Legislature blocked efforts by Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers to reinstitute statewide coronavirus restrictions after the state supreme court struck down his executive order aimed at preventing the virus’ spread. (AP)

TRUMP TELLS GOVERNORS FEDS ‘WILL STEP IN’ IN INF GOVERNMENT DISAGREES WITH STATE REOPENING PLANS

Meanwhile, the Oregon Supreme Court Monday night temporarily blocked a lower court order that would have invalidated all of the state’s coronavirus restrictions. A county circuit judge earlier had ruled that Democratic Gov. Kate Brown needed to get the legislature to sign off on her “stay-at-home” order past a 28-day limit. But the state supreme court ruled that the order would stay in place until the tribunal had a chance to fully review the case, which was brought by a group of churches.

Brown slammed the lower court ruling on Monday before the higher court left her restrictions in place, at least temporarily.

“It is irresponsible to dismiss the health risks and science behind our measures to stop COVID-19,” she tweeted. “We would be faced with the prospect of another mass outbreak without the tools that have proven to be effective in protecting our families, neighbors & loved ones from this disease.”

DEFIANT WHITMER SLAMS ANTI-LOCKDOWN PROTESTS, QUESTIONS POLITICAL MOTIVES BEHIND DEMONSTRATIONS

The looming battle in the Oregon Supreme Court comes as a case is pending before a lower court in Illinois that has the potential to invalidate that state’s coronavirus restrictions implemented by Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker. A judge who ruled against Pritzker’s order as it applied to just one state lawmaker will hear arguments Friday in a case that attempts to undo the order in its entirety, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Pritzker, according to the Associated Press, blasted the state lawmaker, Darren Bailey, who was behind the initial successful attempt to invalidate his order — although on a much smaller scale.

“It’s insulting. It’s dangerous and people’s safety and health have now been put at risk,” Pritzker said. “There may be people who contract coronavirus as a result of what Darren Bailey has done.”

ILLINOIS JUDGE RULES AGAINST GOV. PRITZKER’S STAY-AT-HOME ORDER BROUGHT BY GOP LAWMAKER

Meanwhile, California alone is facing at least a dozen lawsuits that include claims that the state has unjustly closed down gun shops and religious services. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is up against a lawsuit from Republicans in her state’s House and Senate over her extension of an already-strict emergency order that has regulated residents’ movement and closed businesses. And Kentucky protesters sued officials including Gov. Andy Beshear, also a Democrat, for allegedly violating the First Amendment by banning mass protests.

A group of Ohio gyms sued Republican Gov. Mike DeWine over his reopening order excluding them from those businesses allowed to operate, but it was subsequently announced that they will be allowed to reopen after all.

The widespread spate of suits shows that with governors taking the lead on the coronavirus crisis — and the federal government and state legislatures largely in the backseat — those who disapprove of the nature of the coronavirus lockdowns see the judiciary as their only option for relief from the orders.

A lawsuit against Maryland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan by a group of businesses in western Maryland, some former military members, Republican state lawmakers, and several religious leaders is pending in the U.S. District Court of Maryland, with the government’s most recent filing coming Monday. The initial complaint in the suit said: “Governor Hogan has, respectfully, gone beyond all necessities of the case and continues to invade the domain of Federal authority and our rights secured by the Constitution.”

The suit also alleges that Hogan’s aides “refused to state Del. [Daniel] Cox would not be arrested for speaking at” a rally against the governor’s orders, citing prohibitions against large gatherings.

Governors have had at least some success fending off legal challenges to their coronavirus restrictions. Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court turned back an application asking it to overturn Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf’s statewide stay-at-home order.

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