100 Arrested In NYC 'Occupy Wall Street' Protests

NEW YORK - New York City police arrested at least 100 "Occupy Wall Street" protesters Thursday after scuffles broke out between demonstrators and law enforcement during a massive citywide demonstration marking two months since the movement began.

The protest had begun peacefully, but quickly grew tense and escalated as police made at least 100 arrests as of 2:00pm local time Thursday.

Others were cuffed and hauled off after they sat on the ground in defiance after police had ordered them to scatter.

Four officers were injured when a demonstrator threw liquid -- possibly vinegar -- at their faces, police said.

After the arrests, the protesters retreated north along Broadway near Trinity Church. Demonstrators eventually went back to Zuccotti Park.

A fracas between the NYPD and protesters erupted in the park at about 11:00am when demonstrators took down police barricades. Protesters streamed into the park when a few people grabbed a metal barricade and started dragging it, screaming "Whose fences? Our fences!"

Police soon after moved in to restore order, making at least two arrests and putting the barricades back into place.

At the same time, nearby Pine Street remained closed to car traffic, putting the city's bus service temporarily into chaos.

At one point, a contingent of protesters decided to storm City Hall -- but unknowingly ran to the Department of Education building on Chambers Street, where they chanted, "Bloomberg must go! Bloomberg must go!"

Finally, one of the demonstrators realized the mistake and told the others: "This isn't City Hall?"

They then ran to 1 Centre Street, where one exclaimed: "There it is! That's City Hall!" and the chanting resumed.

The day began when a large contingent of 500 protesters gathered near Zuccotti Park at 7:00am and walked towards the New York Stock Exchange.

The demonstrators never were close to the stock exchange and the market opened as normal at 9:30am.

The NYPD prepared for all-out war Thursday -- adding an extra 1,000 officers per shift.

Demonstrators have said they will fan out to 16 transit hubs in all five boroughs at around 3:00pm -- and plan to flood the subways and Staten Island Ferry just in time for the evening commute.

The protesters will ride the rails using their "human microphone" to tell hard-luck stories, and then emerge at Foley Square for a rally and march across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Their last organized hike across the famous bridge resulted in more than 700 arrests on Oct. 1.

Several other "Occupy" protests were ongoing throughout the US on Thursday, with the Los Angeles Times reporting 23 arrests in Los Angeles and The Washington Post reporting demonstrators were planning to march on the Key Bridge in the Georgetown area of the nation's capitol on Thursday afternoon.

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