Police arrest 64 in Louisville anti-racism protests

Aug 26 (Reuters) - Police arrested more than 60 people on Tuesday in a protest march in Louisville, Kentucky, organized for Breonna Taylor, a Black woman killed in March by police officers who burst into her apartment.

Sixty-four people were charged with obstruction and disorderly conduct, Louisville Metro Police Department interim chief Robert Schroeder told reporters.

The protest was organized by advocacy group Until Freedom, calling for justice for Taylor and her family. Around 300 people came out for the Louisville gathering, according to media reports.

Videos posted by the police on social media show that crowds gathered late into the night with police personnel trying to disperse them.

"Violence or property destruction is unacceptable and will be addressed immediately," Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said in a briefing on Tuesday prior to the protest. "Our hope and our expectation is that protests will be peaceful."

Taylor was killed by Louisville police executing a no-knock search warrant who burst into her home. One Louisville police officer was fired and two others were placed on administrative assignment.

Taylor's death, the May 25 death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American, in police custody, and Sunday's shooting of a Black man in Kenosha, Wisconsin, have become rallying points for protests against racial injustice in the United States. (Reporting by Ann Maria Shibu in Bengaluru; Editing by Nick Macfie)