Timeline: Protesters blocked Capital Boulevard traffic for 37 minutes before Raleigh police stepped in

A timeline of how Raleigh police responded to a protest last week shows that demonstrators blocked Capital Boulevard and surrounded cars during the evening commute for more than half an hour before police stepped in.

The protesters had been camped outside the governor's mansion in downtown Raleigh for several days, calling for Gov. Roy Cooper to veto a bill that would keep some details of death investigations confidential, a fact the protesters said would shield law enforcement officers from public scrutiny following death in police custody or in jail.

At 5:49 p.m. Thursday, Sky 5 was overhead as the protesters began blocking Capital Boulevard, surrounding one car for 10 minutes before the driver took off with a protester banging on the windshield.

"After a while, I did get a little scared," Alyssa Rivera, who was caught in the resulting traffic jam, said Monday.

Rivera said she watched as the crowd started circling another car with two people trapped inside.

"I was afraid to move after I saw that," she said. "I was like, 'OK, I’m pregnant. I don’t want anyone surrounding my car.'"

Rivera said she noticed one police officer on the scene early on, adding "he was just standing there not doing anything.”

In fact, it took police until 6:16 p.m. – about 27 minutes – to get anywhere close to the scene and another 10 minutes – 6:26 p.m. – for officers to approach the crowd.

Six minutes later, officers made the first of 20 arrests.

Capital Boulevard was cleared of protesters by 7:05 p.m., and the road was reopened at 7:28 p.m.

“We believe – the rank-and-file of the union believes – that, if people are breaking the law, then law enforcement should take action and law enforcement do their job," said Rick Armstrong, vice president of Teamsters Local 391, which represents the majority of Raleigh officers through the Raleigh Police Protective Association.

Armstrong said officers are more hesitant to move in too quickly now, however, because of intense scrutiny from the public and leadership at the Raleigh Police Department.

"They are walking a very fine line when they do anything at all to enforce the law because they not only have to worry about their safety, but they also have to worry about whether the administration is going to support them on their decisions," he said.

The Capital Boulevard incident followed a series of similar incidents earlier in the day.

Some of the same protesters blocked Blount Street in front of the governor’s mansion at 12:14 p.m. Despite repeated warnings to clear the road at 12:35 p.m. and again at 3:15 p.m., no one was arrested.

Then, at 4:56 p.m., a group of 20 protesters circled a squad car with two officers trapped inside. No action was taken for half an hour before two SWAT officers asked the protesters to let the trapped officers out, and they were able to exit the vehicle at 5:33 p.m.

One protester climbed onto the front of attorney Deb Newton's SUV at 5:14 p.m., and she asked an officer standing across the street for help but says help was denied.

“I do not want to be engaging in fist fights in the street,” Newton said the following day.

The Raleigh Police Department said it's investigating Newton’s complaints and the protest in its entirety.

“As these situations are fluid and protestors continue to change their strategies, RPD officers are constantly evaluating and responding as quickly as possible,” the department said in a statement.