Rally for Calvert

At least 150 protestors marched the streets of Portland on Friday calling for justice in regard to the recent fatal police shooting of Spencer Calvert, 21, Muncie.

The crowd, which peaked at around 4 p.m. when the protest started, chanted and marched downtown for a couple of hours.

Calvert, a 2017 Jay County High School graduate, was shot five times May 1 by Portland police officer Mitchell Rigby in a standoff near the former site of Judge Haynes Elementary School.

Following an investigation by Indiana State Police, the shooting was ruled justified. Police body camera video and witness accounts indicated that Calvert charged Rigby with a knife, which prompted the officer to use deadly force.

The protest began at the south lawn of Jay County Courthouse. The crowd, led by Calvert’s mom and Portland resident Summer Stanton, then began marching in the roadways of Main Street, Meridian Street, Water Street, Votaw Street and others.

During the march, the crowd stopped at several sites including Portland City Hall, Jay County Sheriff’s Office and The Commercial Review office.

Chants — “Justice for Spencer,” “What if it were your son?” and “Get the facts before you print,” and more — were led by family members and friends of Calvert and included targeted cries against the deadly use of force by police, the state’s investigation of the shooting and media coverage of Calvert’s death.

Throughout the protest, which lasted about two hours and spanned several laps around the city along its streets and sidewalks, there was no direct confrontation with police, who were not visibly stationed outside.

A woman who identified herself as Calvert’s sister used a megaphone during the protest and said “We’ll be here every Friday until we get justice” in front of the courthouse.

Stanton, who was in tears after the crowd’s first march across Meridian Street and around city hall, said she was overwhelmed and had been fearful that nobody would care enough about Calvert to protest his death.

Prior to their march, protestors held up signs to the courthouse and began chanting after many reported seeing police officers watching from inside. They also released dozens of balloons in front of the courthouse in honor of Calvert.

Several attempts by some protestors to start more vitriolic chants toward the police were rebuked by Calvert’s family members, many repeating the phrase “peace, love and positivity.” The protest remained peaceful throughout.

The crowd shrunk to less than 50 after about 90 minutes of marching. Some followed along in their cars while others watched the march from golf carts and the front of their businesses and homes.

The only time any protestor entered a building was to buy a drink or other refreshment at the Circle K near city hall. Most of the crowd was younger, many wearing shirts and wristbands in remembrance of Calvert.

No streets were closed during the protest, but many cars and semi trucks had to wait for the crowd to pass. At one point, the crowd marched north on Meridian Street (U.S. 27) from its intersection with Water Street to city hall, blocking northbound traffic for several minutes.

Protestors made no visible attempt to connect their chants and signs with international protests over the death of George Floyd, who was shown on video being suffocated by a Minnesota police officer May 25. Floyd’s death sparked protests in hundreds of cities under the theme of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The crowd broke out into several chants of “all lives matter,” which is commonly used as the antithesis of the phrase “black lives matter.” There were also several chants calling for increased mental health awareness.

Calvert was having an apparent mental breakdown during his confrontation with police and repeatedly stabbed himself despite pleas from police. Officers also attempted to disable him three times using stun guns and tried to knock the knife from his hand by hitting him with a chair.

Jay County Prosecutor Wes Schemenaur provided a press release May 28 detailing the state police’s investigation into the shooting.

Another protest, unrelated to Calvert’s death and not organized by his family, is scheduled for 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Friday in front of the Jay County Courthouse. The protest is expected to be focused on police reform and the Black Lives Matter movement.