Man, 64, is arrested for 'pointing a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters' at demonstration on anniversary of Confederate flag's removal from South Carolina State House
Authorities in South Carolina have arrested a 64-year-old man accused of pointing a gun at peaceful 'Black Lives Matter' demonstrators during dueling protests on the anniversary of the Confederate flag's removal from the State House.
Walter Peter Matulis Jr. was charged Saturday with pointing and presenting a firearm at a person by the Columbia Police Department.
Two groups of protesters were outside the Capitol Friday on the fifth anniversary of the Confederate flag's removal from the grounds.
One gathered to support the Confederate flag; the other carried 'Black Lives Matter' signs in opposition to this group.
Footage of the incident, identified by The State, showed the protesters standing on a median on Gervais Street street near the State House.
Matulis and the protesters can be seen exchanging words, but it's unclear what was said based on the video.
Seconds later, Matulis pulls into the intersection and stops his vehicle despite the green light.
One protesters screams 'He's got a gun' and the camera pans to Matulis' vehicle as it sits in the intersection.
Although a gun cannot be seen in the video, it mirrors the sequence of events laid out by Kamison Burgess, who was among these counter-protesters.
Burgess told The State that the driver 'pulled up sticking his middle finger out.' Authorities said that Matulis made a rude hand gesture at protesters when the incident began.
Footage taken during the incident appears to show Matulis sitting in his vehicle and exchanging words with Black Lives Matter protesters
Witnesses alleged that Matulis pulled into the intersection during a green light, stopped and pointed his gun at protesters
Authorities arrested Matulis after interviewing him at his South Carolina home on Saturday
'He stopped in the middle of the road at the green light and said 'All lives matter'', said Burgess.
'One of the girls, she was explaining 'Yes, all lives matter, but they can't matter at the moment until Black lives matter.'''
Burgess said this prompted the driver to reveal a gun at protesters.
'At that point in time, he drove up a little more, the light was still green, and he started fidgeting around inside his car, and he pointed a gun out at us,' she said.
Columbia police investigated using video taken by protesters, interviewed Matulis at his home and then arrested him. They added that footage taken by witnesses helped them identify him.
Pointing a firearm is a felony offense and, if found guilty, could land Matulis in prison for five years.
It's unclear whether Matulis had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
This is one of a handful of incidents where people have pointed guns at Black Lives Matter protesters.
Last month, a couple in St. Louis, Missouri, brandished an AR-15 and a handgun at protesters marching past their mansion in an upscale neighborhood.
On Friday, authorities searched the home of lawyers Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who made headlines on June 28 when a video went viral showing them waving firearms at protesters who had massed outside their home.
The search turned up the AR-15 that had been held by Mark McCloskey, while a handgun brandished by Patricia McCloskey was already in possession of her attorney, Fox reports.
Armed homeowners, Patty and Mark McCloskey, stand in front their house along Portland Place and confront protesters marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's house on Sunday
No charges have been filed against the couple.
The protests outside the State House saw members from of a group calling themselves the South Carolina Memorial Honour Guard perform a flag ceremony.
They were met on the State House steps by members of the Columbia Racial Justice Coalition on the capital's doorstep.
The flag held by one of the Honour Guard members, clad in Civil War dress uniform, was not the battle emblem, with its red field topped by a blue X and 13 white stars, as expected.
Instead, the group unfurled the official state flag, with its palmetto tree and white crescent.
A woman with the group did not answer questions about their choice of flag Friday. She said they were not speaking with reporters.
The group's decision not to unfurl the Confederate battle flag prompted one counterprotester, Tori Hyder, to call the Honour Guard members 'cowards.'
Demonstrators dressed in civil war attire participate in a flag ceremony in front of a Confederate statue at the State House in Columbia, South Carolina
Two sets of barricades set up by law enforcement separated the Honour Guard from Hyder and about two dozen other counterprotesters, who lined the sidewalk carrying signs that read 'Black Lives Matter' and other slogans.
Counterprotesters interviewed said they were taking a stance against the Confederate flag, widely seen as a symbol of racism and hatred.
Some of the demonstrators said they had gathered at the statehouse daily since late May.
South Carolina pulled down the rebel banner from the Capitol grounds in 2015, a month after a white supremacist slaughtered nine black church members during a Bible study at a Charleston church.
Since then, groups for and against the Confederate battle flag have regularly gathered on the anniversary of its removal from South Carolina's Statehouse.
Pictured: a protester holds a 'Dismantle White Supremacy' sign outside the South Carolina State House over the weekend
On Friday, the Honour Guard blasted music from its speakers, including 'The Star-Spangled Banner' and songs from the Confederacy such as 'Join the Calvary!'
At one point, counterprotesters on the opposite side of Gervais St. blared heavy metal, each side attempting to drown the other out.
Both the Honour Guard and the Columbia Racial Justice Coalition attempted to reserve a permit for the grounds at the same time on Friday, news outlets reported.
State officials scheduled the Honour Guard's gathering in the morning and the coalition's event in the afternoon.
A third group, Flags across the South, flew the Confederate flag from a temporary flagpole by a monument dedicated to confederate soldiers Saturday
Man, 64, is arrested for 'pointing a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters' at demonstration on anniversary of Confederate flag's removal from South Carolina State House
![Man, 64, is arrested for 'pointing a gun at Black Lives Matter protesters' at demonstration on anniversary of Confederate flag's removal from South Carolina State House]()
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