Denver police arrested 36 people during a protest downtown Saturday night, deploying smoke and pepper balls to disperse crowds, multiple news outlets reported. Why it matters: The use of crowd-control measures like smoke was an escalation from earlier Saturday,

Denver police arrested 17 protesters on suspicion of graffiti, interference with law enforcement, obstructing streets, throwing objects and assault, according to the police department.

A large gathering that started out at the Colorado State Capitol to rally against the growing numbers of deportations of people in Colorado and the country illegally became a march down a Denver street.