Roanoke city officials declare state of emergency

Seven arrests have been made amidst

.

According to the City of Roanoke

•Cadie Baglin - 20 of Troutville, charged with unlawful assembly

•Tyreek Burrows – 28 of Roanoke, charged with unlawful gathering and possession of a concealed firearm

•Devon Johnson – 27 of Roanoke, charged with unlawful assembly

•Khairajhn Sims – 25 of Roanoke, charged with unlawful assembly

•Trevor MacDermott – 26 of Roanoke, charged with unlawful assembly

•Annabelle Layman – 25 of Blacksburg, charged with unlawful assembly

•Tre’vaughn Wilson – 27 of Roanoke, charged with simple assault (this relates to an incident that happened before police arrived at the Walmart)

Roanoke is under a local state of emergency, according to City Manager Bob Cowell.

This move allows a curfew to be implemented should the need arise.

Roanoke City Police Chief Roman said, "Actions of very few sometimes will affect the entire crowd. This is no different than what happened with the police officers. Most police officers are really great, outstanding police officers."

"We encourage peaceful protest," added Chief Roman.

"We wanted the day to be remembered as a peaceful exercise of their rights to rally," said Mayor Sherman Lea. He says the violence "must stop."

No rubber bullets or tear gas have been used by officers thus far. A couple cases involved police using personal pepper spray and pepper ball rounds, which are sprayed at the ground to create a cloud and back up a crowd.

Chief Roman added a message to protesters: “We understand the frustration, we understand why people are upset now. But my message would be, I think that there are more opportunities to work together instead of using this moment in our country as a moment in which we become separate. The great work that we have done here in the city, I think there are many bridges with which we can connect and re-establish because of the work that we've done to ensure that we keep building upon the great successes that we’ve had here in Roanoke.”