One of the four officers charged in connection with George Floyd’s death on Memorial Day in Minneapolis posted bail and was released from jail on Wednesday.

Thomas Lane, who was charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder, is scheduled to be in court later this month. His attorney, Earl Gray, said he will file a motion to dismiss Lane’s charges.

Also Wednesday, Floyd’s brother called on Congress to make police more accountable while a few blocks away crews began disassembling some of the temporary security fencing installed around the White House last week amid protests for racial justice and police reform.

On Capitol Hill, Philonise Floyd, Floyd’s brother, along with family attorney Ben Crump and other witnesses discussed the death, policing practices and law enforcement accountability in testimony before the House Judiciary Committee.

“I’m tired of pain, the pain you feel when you watch … your big brother who you looked up to for your whole entire life die, die begging for his mom,” Floyd said. “I’m here to ask you to make it stop. Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired.”

A closer look at some recent developments:

• The Los Angeles Police Department has launched 56 investigations into complaints of officer misconduct during protests in the nation’s second largest city.
• President Donald Trump said he would not consider renaming military bases named after Confederate leaders. “These Monumental and very Powerful Bases have become part of a Great American Heritage, and a history of Winning, Victory, and Freedom,” Trump tweeted.
• The vast majority of George Floyd protests – 80% – appeared to be peaceful, according to new research that contradicts the emphasis the White House has often put on the instances of looting and rioting.

Our live blog will be updated throughout the day. For first-in-the-morning updates, sign up for the Daily Briefing. Here’s the latest news:

Donald Trump tells Washington state, Seattle leaders to ‘take back your city NOW’

President Donald Trump targeted Seattle in a pair of late-night tweets on Wednesday, chastising the “Radical Left” governor and mayor and claiming that “Domestic Terrorists” had overrun the largest city in Washington state.

Singling out Jay Inslee, a one-time Democratic presidential candidate, and Jenny Durkan, who has faced calls to resign as Seattle’s top elected official, Trump tweeted, “Take back your city NOW. If you don’t do it, I will. This is not a game. These ugly Anarchists must be stooped IMMEDIATELY. MOVE FAST!”

In a second tweet, Trump called for “LAW & ORDER.”

Durkan’s response on Twitter: “Make us all safe. Go back to your bunker. #BlackLivesMatter”

The president’s attack came on the on the same day Seattle Police were exploring the reopening of a precinct in the Hill neighborhood that was shuttered during ongoing protests sparked by George Floyd’s death in police custody in Minneapolis.

– Steve Kiggins

Jefferson Davis statue torn down by protesters in Richmond, Virginia

A statue of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy, was torn down along Richmond, Virginia’s famed Monument Avenue on Wednesday night.

The statue was toppled shortly before 11 p.m. and is on the ground in the middle of an intersection, news outlets reported.

A statue of Christopher Columbus in Richmond met a similar fate on Tuesday, when it was torn down by protesters, set on fire and then submerged into a lake. News outlets reported the figure was toppled less than two hours after protesters gathered in the city’s Byrd Park chanting for the statue to be taken down. 

Los Angeles Police Department opens 56 investigations into excessive force, misconduct

The Los Angeles Police Department is investigating 56 complaints of excessive force and police misconduct in the nation’s second largest city during protests sparked by the death of George Floyd. 

“We will look into every complaint thoroughly and hold every officer accountable for their actions,” the department said in a news release Wednesday.

Of the 56 investigations, 28 are related to use of force, according to the news release. Seven officers have already been assigned off-field duties.

On Twitter, Mayor Eric Garcetti said LAPD had opened 58 investigations and added, “You can report an incident to the independent Inspector General at 213-893-6400, oigcompl@lapd.online or at http://oig.lacity.org.”

Last week, Garcetti said he would cut $100 million to $150 million from the police budget and reinvest the funds into communities of color.

One of the four fired Minneapolis police officers makes bail, leaves jail

Thomas Lane, one of four former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death on Memorial Day, was released from jail Wednesday after posting bail, The Star Tribune reported.

Lane, 37, was charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder. His bail was set at $750,000. A fundraising website created to bail him out of jail has been taken down, The Tribune reported. Lane’s attorney, Earl Gray, told the newspaper that the site was real but he did not know who started it or how much money was raised.

Lane’s next hearing is scheduled for June 29. Gray said he plans to file a motion to dismiss Lane’s charges.

Donald Trump opposed to renaming bases named for Confederate leaders

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would not consider renaming a number of military bases that are currently named for Confederate military leaders after his defense and Army secretaries signaled they would be willing to discuss the issue earlier this week.

“These Monumental and very Powerful Bases have become part of a Great American Heritage, and a history of Winning, Victory, and Freedom. The United States of America trained and deployed our HEROES on these Hallowed Grounds, and won two World Wars,” Trump tweeted. “Therefore, my Administration will not even consider the renaming of these Magnificent and Fabled Military Installations.”

Trump did not address the issue of Confederate generals, but rather focused on the legacy of the facilities themselves, listing three bases in the South named for generals in the Confederate army.

– Jeanine Santucci

Southern Baptist Convention president wants to take down gavel named after slaveholder

The president of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, wants to retire a gavel named after a slaveholder that was used for meetings, the Religion News Service reported.

“Southern Baptists, I think it is time to retire the Broadus gavel,” president J.D. Greear said in a statement. “While we do not want to, nor could we, erase our history, it is time for this gavel to go back into the display case at the Executive Committee offices.”

The gavel was named after John A. Broadus, a Confederacy supporter and the second president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, the SBC’s flagship seminary. Greear’s decision comes a day after he said that Southern Baptists should say “black lives matter,” although he doesn’t agree with the Black Lives Matter organization demanding to ‘defund the police.’

Former Justice employees call for probe of Barr’s handling of protests

A section of the temporary security fence protecting the White House was coming down Wednesday as more than 1,200 Justice Department “alumni” released a letter asking for a probe of Attorney General William Barr’s response to a protest there. The letter to Inspector General  Michael Horowitz addresses a rally June 1 – when authorities forcibly cleared protesters out before the start of a curfew, apparently to enable a photo opportunity for President Donald Trump. 

“If the Attorney General or any other DOJ employee has directly participated in actions that have deprived Americans of their constitutional rights or that physically injured Americans lawfully exercising their rights, that would be misconduct of the utmost seriousness,” the letter says.

A section of fencing south of the White House was being removed, but the Secret Service said it was in “continuing discussions” with U.S. Park Police regarding the fencing in and around Lafayette Park, site of some contentious demonstrations since Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police on Memorial Day. 

Vast majority of recent protests have been peaceful, new research says

The death of George Floyd has sparked more than two weeks of widespread, mass demonstrations around the world in protest of racial injustice and police brutality against people of color.

The vast majority – 80% – appeared to be peaceful, according to new research that contradicts the emphasis the White House has often put on the instances of looting and rioting. As of Tuesday, more than 970 protests had taken place in about 400 cities and towns across the country, according to research conducted by the marketing firm Ipsos and teams from the Universities of Chicago and Oxford. 

“The numbers and the breadth are actually pretty impressive,” said Chris Jackson, senior vice president at Ipsos. “We’re seeing these protests happening in all 50 states. … It’s not just the big cities; it’s towns across the board. And the large majority of these protests have been peaceful protests.”

– Maureen Groppe and Kristine Phillips

Minneapolis police department drops contract talks, begins overhaul

The Minneapolis Police Department is withdrawing from police union contract negotiations, Chief Medaria Arradondo said Wednesday. Arradondo called he decision a first step toward reforming the agency in the wake of the death of George Floyd. Arradondo said a thorough review of the contract is planned and that it needs to be restructured to provide more transparency and flexibility.

The review would look at matters such as critical incident protocols, use of force, and disciplinary protocols including grievances and arbitration, he said. The review comes days after a majority of the city council said they supported defunding the department over the objections of Mayor Jacob Frey.

George Floyd’s brother: Make police ‘the solution and not the problem’

The brother of George Floyd urged Congress to make law enforcement more accountable – and less willing to use deadly force. Philonise Floyd, testifying before the House Judiciary Committee, said George’s calls for help were ignored on a Minneapolis street the day he died. His brother did not deserve to die over an investigation into a counterfeit $20 bill, Philonise Floyd said.

“Please listen to the call I’m making to you now, to the calls of our family, and to the calls ringing out in the streets across the world,” he said. “People of all backgrounds, genders and race have come together to demand change. Honor them, honor George, and make the necessary changes that make law enforcement the solution – and not the problem.”

Co-worker says accused officer had ‘bumped heads’ with Floyd at work

George Floyd and the former police officer charged with killing him knew each other from their security work at a Minneapolis club and had a history of friction, a co-workers says. Dave Pinney told CBS News that Derek Chauvin, charged with second degree murder, had been paid to sit outside the club in his patrol car while off duty. Floyd, who worked security inside the club, had “bumped heads” with Chauvin at work, Pinney said.

“It has a lot to do with Derek being extremely aggressive within the club with some of the patrons, which was an issue,” Pinney said. The Floyd family has previously said they believe Chauvin’s treatment of Floyd was part personal, citing their conflicts at El Nuevo Rodeo, which was destroyed by fire during protests.

New Jersey prison guard suspended for video mocking George Floyd’s death

A New Jersey corrections officer has been suspended and a FedEx employee was fired for their alleged roles in creation of a “hateful and disappointing” video mocking the police-involved death of George Floyd.

A prisons spokeswoman confirmed a “senior officer” at Bayside Correctional Facility was involved. The union representing state corrections officers also decried the video, and FedEx said it does “not tolerate the kind of appalling and offensive behavior.” Floyd died after a Minneapolis officer knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes.

– Carly Q. Romalino, Cherry Hill Courier-Post

Berkeley, California, votes unanimously to ban use of tear gas

The Berkeley City Council on Tuesday night unanimously voted to outright ban the use of tear gas in the California city, councilmember Rigel Robinson tweeted.

Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin initially submitted a motion prohibiting the use of tear gas by the police during the COVID-19 pandemic, but councilmember Cheryl Davila motioned for its total abolishment, local news source Berkeleyside reported in their live-tweeting of the meeting.

“The era of militarism is over,” councilmember Ben Bartlett said, according to the site.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines tear gas as “chemical compounds that temporarily make people unable to function by causing irritation to the eyes, mouth, throat, lungs, and skin.” The riot control agent is banned in wars.

– Elinor Aspegren

More on protests, George Floyd:

Contributing: The Associated Press

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Another reality television show about police, A&E’s “Live PD,” has been canceled in the wake of national antipathy over the in-custody death of George Floyd.

“This is a critical time in our nation’s history, and we have made the decision to cease production on Live PD,” the network said in a statement Wednesday.

The show that followed officers and deputies as they chased suspects in vehicles and on foot was in the news this week after a Texas prosecutor accused a local sheriff’s department of keeping “Live PD” footage of a car chase under wraps.

Javier Ambler, 40, died March 28, 2019, after he was tased four times at the end of the 22-minute chase in Austin, Texas, according to NBC affiliate KXAN. NBC News has not verified that timeline nor the cause of Ambler’s death.

Body-camera footage from an Austin officer who responded to the scene captured the victim telling law enforcement he had heart problems and saying, “I can’t breathe.”

Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore said Monday that the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office has not cooperated with its investigation of the death of the former postal worker, including handing over “Live PD” footage.

The sheriff’s office said in a statement it “remains ready and willing to participate in the investigation” and was not contacted by the district attorney about it.

A&E did not address the prosecutor’s allegations. But host Dan Abrams posted a statement on Twitter that said the pursuit footage never aired because “it involved a fatality.”

“Contrary to many incorrect reports,” his statement says, “neither A&E nor the producers of Live PD were asked for the footage or an interview by investigators from law enforcement or the District Attorney’s office.”

Diana Dasrath contributed.