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BLM demonstrator files $200,000 claim against DC National Guard saying she was injured by a low-flying helicopter during a George Floyd protest

  A protestor who claims she was injured by a low-flying helicopter at a demonstration to protest the killing of   George Floyd   has filed ...

 A protestor who claims she was injured by a low-flying helicopter at a demonstration to protest the killing of George Floyd has filed a claim against the DC National Guard.

Dzhuliya Dashtamirova, 23, of Baltimore, says she was caught in storm-force winds created by the rotor wash of Guard helicopters in Washington, DC.

A helicopter hovered below the tops of buildings and followed crowds between Gallery Place and Judiciary Square the evening of June 1.

The claim, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of DC seeks damages of $200,000 under the Federal Tort Claims Act for physical harm.

Dzhuliya Dashtamirova, 23, of Baltimore, says she was caught in storm-force winds created by the rotor wash of low-flying Guard helicopters in Washington, DC, on June 1 (pictured)

Dzhuliya Dashtamirova, 23, of Baltimore, says she was caught in storm-force winds created by the rotor wash of low-flying Guard helicopters in Washington, DC, on June 1 (pictured)

Protesters look up as a military helicopter flies low pushing a strong vertical down wash of air (rotor wash) onto the crowd during a protest over the death of George Floyd on June 1

Protesters look up as a military helicopter flies low pushing a strong vertical down wash of air (rotor wash) onto the crowd during a protest over the death of George Floyd on June 1


Lawyers claim she is suffering ongoing psychological injuries from an intimidation tactic that lawmakers and human rights activists say has been deployed against insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan.

She experienced eye irritation for several days after the protest and continues to experience mental and emotional trauma including anxiety, insomnia and intensified migraine headaches, the claim says.

Dashtamirova had traveled from Baltimore to demonstrate peacefully for racial justice after the May killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.

In a statement, Dashtamirova said: 'My eyes and skin were burning from all the debris flying everywhere. I couldn’t see anything. 

Helicopter in Washington D.C. attempts to disperse protesters
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'It was terrifying and felt like a warning to people who believe in racial justice that if we say things the government doesn’t like, it will use the full force of the military against us,' reported the Washington Post

ACLU lawyer Michael Perloff called the deployment of helicopters 'a dangerous, unprecedented show of force' against Americans exercising First Amendment rights.

Perloff said: 'The streets of D.C. are not a war zone, and protesters are not the enemy. Our government should stop treating them that way.'

The ACLU said: 'The tactic employed on June 1 is known as a rotor wash and has been used in Afghanistan, Iraq, and conflict zones around the world. 

'The Trump administration’s decision to deploy it against racial justice protestors on American soil constitutes unprecedented attempt to interfere with fundamental constitutional rights.' 

The helicopter is seen flying over protesters in DC
The low-flying helicopter is seen over protesters

The National Guard of Washington, DC, is investigating the use of one of its helicopters (left and right) to make a 'show of force' against George Floyd protesters near the White House

DC protestors stand ground as helicopter hovers low over them
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If the military denies the claim or does not respond within six months, the plaintiff may file a lawsuit in federal court.

Two DC Guard helicopters flew over protesters on June 1, with a UH-72 Lakota hovering around 45ft over the heads of protesters.

The helicopter, normally designated for use in medical evacuations, hovered low enough to create a deafening noise and spray protesters with rotor wash.

The National Guard of Washington, DC, launched an ongoing investigation into the use of the helicopters, directed by the commanding general of the DC Guard, Maj Gen William Walker.

Military law experts and human rights groups criticised the Guard's use of a red cross on its Lakota, saying the red cross is a symbol of global mercy and is inconsistent with what has been widely described as manoeuvres to intimidate. 

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