Parramore residents fed up with Orlando police to march to City Hall

ORLANDO, Fla. — Parramore residents told Channel 9 Orlando police are out of control, their latest complaint coming after a block party last month was greeted with police in riot gear.

Nearly 1,000 people were at the party when police showed up to break it up.

Some Parramore residents planned to gather Thursday evening to march to City Hall in an effort to let the city know they believe the officers stepped over the line and something needs to be done. Strong storms moved into the Orlando area forcing them to postpone the March until Monday.

Residents are filing a complaint asking the city not only to look into the case but to make sure similar situations don’t happen again.

"It was really uncalled for," said Parramore resident Yvonne Smith.

Smith has lived in Parramore off and on for 35 years and said she's seen so many changes in the community, but lately those changes haven't been good. She said the city's police continue to take things too far.

"We need to stand up for ourselves. We really need to," she said.

Smith was at the block party when Orlando police officers with helmets and shields lined the street. She said there were lots of people on the block but everyone was behaving. She said police didn't find trouble, so they made it.

"We don't have nowhere to go," said Smith. "All we do is sit home and when we start to have something at the house, I think you can have something at your house. It wasn't rowdy. Everybody was conversing. Everyone was having a good time."

Organizers of the block party handed out flyers hoping to get as many people as they could out to the event. They want to make sure Thursday's march to City Hall makes a statement that they are not taking this lying down.

But Orlando police are standing by the decision to bring officers out. Officials told Channel 9 on Thursday they will allow the march and allow those attending to exercise their First Amendment rights, even if it's a complaint about them.

Organizers did get a permit for the event.

WFTV