Daunte Wright protesters use umbrellas as shields against police

Flashbangs, gas grenades and chemical irritants were released by authorities

Photographs from the third night of protests in Minneapolis following the killing of Daunte Wright showed demonstrators getting creative to protect themselves from deterrent tactics used by police.

Images from Tuesday night in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, revealed a group of protesters using umbrellas to protect themselves from fumes of chemical irritants released by authorities.

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered again at the heavily guarded police headquarters, which has been ringed by concrete barriers and a tall metal fence, with police in riot gear and National Guard soldiers standing watch.

The third night of unrest comes following the shooting of 20-year-old Mr Wright, a Black man, by a police officer during a traffic stop in a Minneapolis suburb.

State police announced over a loudspeaker around 90 minutes before a 10pm curfew, that the gathering had been declared unlawful and ordered the crowds to disperse.

State police said the dispersal order came ahead of the curfew because protesters were trying to take down the fencing and throwing rocks at police. The number of protesters dropped rapidly into the night until only a few remained.

Police launched flashbangs and gas grenades at the crowd and then marched in a line to force back the crowd. Protesters were seen launching fireworks toward the station and throwing objects at police.

On Wednesday authorities announced that the former Minnesota police officer who fatally shot Mr Wright, Kim Potter, will face manslaughter charges.

Demonstrators protesting the shooting death of Daunte Wright face-off with police near the Brooklyn Center police station on 13 April 2021 (Getty Images)

Ms Potter, a 26-year veteran of the Brooklyn Center Police Department, will be charged with second-degree manslaughter in connection to Mr Wright’s death, Washington County Attorney Pete Orput announced.

Ms Potter and Police Chief Tim Gannon both resigned on Tuesday. Mr Gannon has said he believed Ms Potter mistakenly grabbed her pistol when she was trying to pull out her Taser.

Chief of the Minnesota State Patrol Matt Langer told CNN the unified command in Brooklyn Center made “upwards of 60 arrests” on Tuesday night, many of which were for “riot and other criminal behaviours.”

Tensions are already high in the city amid the trial of Derek Chauvin, the white former Minneapolis police officer charged with murdering George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, last May.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press