PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The mother of a man who was seriously injured during a protest outside the US District Courthouse in downtown Portland Saturday night said she was able to speak with her son on Sunday, who was still in the hospital.
Witnesses at the demonstration last night said Donavan Labella, whose identity was confirmed by his mother Desiree, was hit in the head with some sort of munition from federal officers that left him bleeding on the ground across the street from the courthouse around 10 p.m.
Shortly after it happened, a friend of Labella’s, who identified themselves as Princess, said that he was not being aggressive when he was injured. Princess said Labella had been holding up a speaker over his head.
“What happened was, he picked up a speaker, right in front of the federal building. He picked up the speaker and right when he put it over his head, they went boom and then he went down,” said Princess on Saturday night.
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A woman who helped Labella in the moments before an ambulance arrived said he had a deep cut on the left side of his head. “It caused a pretty deep laceration, but he was bleeding from his nose, his mouth, his ears—it was pretty bad,” Jessica Shifflett said.
On Sunday, Desiree said her son underwent facial reconstructive surgery. She said she was able to speak with him earlier in the day by computer. Desiree also said they are considering legal action on Donavan’s behalf.
After videos of the incident were widely circulated on social media, several of Oregon’s leaders reacted to the violence on Sunday. Governor Kate Brown said, “The events of last night at the federal courthouse were the tragic and avoidable result of President Donald Trump, for weeks, continuing to push for force and violence in response to protests.”
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden also placed blame on the president with a message on Twitter.
Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and Mayoral Candidate Sara Iannarone released statements as well.