Mayor Mike Johnston said the city will not tolerate violent protests that damage small businesses or assault police officers, even as he vowed to oppose sending the National Guard or federal forces to handle rallies in Denver.

Johnston added that he has “100% confidence in the Denver Police Department.”

“If people are violent and they’re damaging someone’s small business, we’re gonna arrest you,” he said. “If you are assaulting an officer, we’re gonna arrest you. If you’re trying to light cars on fire, we’re gonna arrest you.”

The protests in Denver, including Tuesday’s confrontation, had been tame compared to the violence that erupted in Los Angeles, where demonstrators have blocked a freeway, hurled Molotov cocktails at officers and set cars on fire, and authorities have fired tear gas and flash bangs.

Johnston reiterated that Denver has already been seeing a staccato of protests since President Donald Trump took office in January — and they had been peaceful, save for Tuesday night.

“We’ve had protests almost every single week since Trump became president,” Johnston told 9News reporter Marc Sallinger in an interview. “We’ve had protests almost every week for the last two years, and every one of them has been peaceful. This is the first time we’ve had any arrests in, maybe more than a year, at one of these types of events — and that’s because there were a very small number of people who were hostile and were violent.”

On Tuesday night, 18 people were arrested in connection with local protests over the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

“We do not need a National Guard,” the mayor said. “We don’t need any federal support; we don’t need Marines, and there’s not gonna be behavior on our streets that’s going to show that there’s a need for that. We will continue to make the case there is no need for federal intervention, and we will oppose it if they try to bring it.”

In a statement released Wednesday morning, the Denver Police Department said that, as demonstrators marched along streets and blocked roadways, officers had to divert vehicular traffic as a safety precaution.

At times, officers deployed smoke and pepper balls to disperse crowds blocking roadways or deny their access to areas.

Police said two people were arrested on suspicion of second-degree assault on a peace officer and a third for second-degree assault.

“You’re making a statement by assaulting our (police) officers,” Johnston said. “You’re just making the city less safe; we’re not going to tolerate that, and we’ll step in on it.”

He added: “We want folks to come and protest peacefully, but they should make sure the folks that come with them also are here to protest peacefully — because you’ve damaged the movement when you start committing crimes and damaging property.”

Johnston has been on the Trump administration’s radar since before the president took office in January over his resistance to the president’s mass deportation campaign. At one point, he signaled his willingness to go to jail and suggested that the city police would resist federal forces. He had since walked that back.   

In March, Johnston was summoned before the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that was investigating “sanctuary” jurisdictions. He defended his administration’s response to the illegal immigration crisis, casting the city’s actions in moral terms.

During the hearing, one Republican lawmaker recommended filing obstruction of justice charges against the “sanctuary city” mayors who do not comply with federal law. And in another tense exchange, another Republican lawmaker called Johnston to task for releasing from Denver custody and onto the street — rather than to ICE authorities — an alleged gang member after which a brief chase ensued that resulted in a minor injury to an agent. The immigrant was ultimately detained.  

Some said the recent demonstrations against deportation actions in Los Angeles could put a spotlight on Denver.

Johnston reiterated his position that local authorities have done well in responding to the protests and that “there’s no reason to invite a new battle with the president” in a city that, he insisted, doesn’t have a crisis.

Johnston also suggested that Trump is trying to score political points by “looking for every opportunity to make this the news story in every city in America.” The mayor said that is not “good” for immigrants and businesses.

When asked about how Denver would respond to the president deploying federal forces or the National Guard, Johnston said the key is for the city not to reach that stage. The White House has not suggested sending federal forces to quell protests in Denver. 

“What we know is we can protest peacefully, people can be heard, and we can enforce the rule of law,” he said. “We can have both the First Amendment and public safety, and this is why, I think, last night also proved Denver doesn’t need any help to manage this problem.”

Johnston said the city would respond appropriately and balance the right amount of force based on the behavior of demonstrators.

To date, the City of Denver has paid out close to $15 million in settlement claims stemming from police actions during the George Floyd protests in the summer of 2020. Plaintiffs’ claims ranged from free speech violation to injuries resulting from excessive force and less-than-lethal force, such as rubber bullets, tear gas, pepper spray, and pepper balls, according to court documents.

The Denver City Council also agreed on Monday to pay $399,000 to settle a police misconduct case, bringing the city’s total for such settlements for 2025 to $5.1 million.

Councilmembers unanimously approved five separate resolutions relating to a U.S. District Court case where a group of activists, journalists and YouTubers alleged they were the victims of police violence while filming and documenting police activity during the George Floyd protests in 2020.

During the 2020 protests, activists and the police clashed. Businesses reported their windows had been broken and goods stolen, in addition to graffiti. At one point, the Downtown Denver Partnership said it learned of more than 200 cases of property damage. The cleanup cost to the damage from vandalism at the Colorado Capitol property alone cost more than $1 million. 

Denver Gazette news partner 9News contributed to this story. To read more, click here.