Disturbance on North Patterson Avenue. That's how some witnesses described the fight that took place there Tuesday evening. Winston-Salem Police said several people began jumping into their patrol cars as they tried to de-escalate the situation. The purpose of the rally is unclear, but police told WXII that enough people had gathered that they had to call in additional backup. They weren't focused on making arrests, they were just focused on getting people home safely. As multiple units tried to break up the situation, police say someone began jumping into a patrol car while others filmed. No arrests have been made yet, but Capt. Michael Knight says people will be charged. “They pretty much took over the street,” he said. “It's just that the crowd took over the street. At this point, we don't see any other charges, such as damage to property, damage, or the use of police cars.” At this point, they don't know yet. Why did people flock to Patterson in the first place? “There's a lot going on in the city on social media,” he says. “So we think that's where it came from. But again, we're still investigating.” But some neighbors who live along the road, including Bishop Andrea Nash, say such He said he was disappointed to see such malicious behavior. “It’s very disappointing, very frustrating,” she said. “We don't need to come together for the wrong thing instead of the right thing. I wish they could come together and fast and pray to make this Patterson Avenue a better neighborhood,” Knight said. I will continue to press charges until the end so that the public understands how serious this is.” “So for the community, if we see something again, we need to say something.” Knight said police and other law enforcement agencies are working to prevent further incidents in the Winston-Salem area It added that it would strengthen its presence in the area. Because this happens. WXII also contacted WSSU to ask if this rally had any connection to Rumfest. A spokesperson responded that Goetling has no connection to the university or Rumfest's official activities.
Disturbance on North Patterson Avenue. That's how some witnesses described the fight that took place there Tuesday evening. Winston-Salem Police said they tried to de-escalate the situation and several people started jumping into their patrol cars.
The purpose of the rally is unclear, but police told WXII that enough people had gathered that they had to call in additional backup. They weren't focused on making arrests, they were just focused on getting people home safely.
As multiple units tried to break up the situation, police say someone began jumping into a patrol car while others filmed. No arrests have been made yet, but Capt. Michael Knight says people will be charged.
“They pretty much took over the street,” he said. “It's just that the crowd took over the street. At this point, we don't see any other charges, such as vandalism or damage to property or damage to police vehicles.”
At this point, it's still unclear why people flocked to Paterson in the first place.
“There's a lot going on on social media in the city,” he says. “So we think that's where it came from. But again, we're still investigating.”
But some neighbors who live along the road, including Bishop Andrea Nash, said they were disappointed to see such egregious behavior.
“It’s very disappointing and very frustrating,” she said. “We don't need to come together for the wrong thing instead of the right thing. I wish they would come together and fast and pray to make this Patterson Avenue a better neighborhood.”
“I'm going to press charges until the end so that the public understands how serious this is,” Knight said. “So for the community, if we see something again, we need to say something.”
Knight added that police and other law enforcement agencies will have a heightened presence around Winston-Salem to prevent more incidents like this from happening.
WXII also reached out to WSSU to ask if the rally had any connection to Rum Fest. A spokesperson responded that Goetling has no connection to the university or Rumfest's official activities.