After the white Minneapolis police officer who knelt on Floyd's neck was arrested and charged with murder, authorities imposed an overnight curfew to try to stop protests flaring up again on Friday night.

But, the local Star Tribune reported the curfew "did little to quell rioters in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St Paul, as hundreds of marchers ignored orders to go home at 8pm and looters broke into businesses and set fires to cars and structures as law enforcement and other forces appeared sparse".

The outlet said many businesses and public structures had been boarded up and fortified in preparation for the fourth night of demonstrations against police brutality.

Derek Chauvin, 44, was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. He also was accused of ignoring another officer who expressed concerns about Floyd as he lay handcuffed on the ground, pleading that he could not breathe as Chauvin pressed his knee into his neck. Floyd, who was black, had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit bill at a store.

Chauvin, who was fired along with three other officers who were at the scene, faces more than 12 years in prison if convicted of murder.

Protests around the country were largely peaceful as demonstrators marched in the streets from Los Angeles to New York, but in Atlanta, demonstrators set a police car ablaze, broke windows and tagged doors at CNN's headquarters. One protester climbed on top of the CNN sign and waved a "Black Lives Matter" flag to cheers from the crowd.

Protesters pelted officers who came over with bottles, striking some of them. Other bottles thrown at authorities exploded behind the police line, but no officers appeared to get hit. Protesters chanted, "Quit your jobs". Another group burnt an American flag.

Earlier, as the protest appeared more calm, Kaity Brackett, 27, said she came out to the protest because she thinks the entire criminal justice system needs to be overhauled, starting with policing. She said the Ahmaud Arbery killing was a catalyst for her and referred to his death as a lynching. Arbery was killed on February 23 by a former district attorney investigator and his son, who were not arrested until after video emerged months later.

"We risk our lives going to the grocery store, going to get gas," she said. "This is more important than all of that."

In Denver Mayor Michael Hancock called for calm and unity after the first of several planned city protests turned violent, declaring, "Let not the story be about the riots and protests. Let's keep the focus on the life that was lost."

"I can tell you not to go out and demonstrate but the reality is it's going to happen," Hancock said at a news briefing, stressing he shared outrage over what he's called the "senseless and tragic murder" of Floyd in Minneapolis.

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Hancock and Police Chief Paul Pazen blamed what they called a minority of agitators among peaceful protesters for inciting violence throughout downtown on Thursday when three officers were injured and that 13 people were arrested for burglary, criminal mischief and assault.

In New York, demonstrators took to city streets for a second day invoking Floyd's and the names of other black people who died at police hands, like Eric Garner, who died on Staten Island in 2014.

"It's my duty to be out here," said Brianna Petrisko, among those at Foley Square in lower Manhattan, most wearing masks, where the demonstrations started Friday. The protest took place despite coronavirus prohibitions on large gatherings. The demonstrators were gathered in the square, while police stood across the street.

"Our country has a sickness," Petrisko said. "We have to be out here. This is the only way we're going to be heard."

People also rallied in Las Vegas, Nevada; Phoenix, Arizona; Fontana, California; Columbus, Ohio, and Houston, Texas, among others.

Meanwhile President Donald Trump tried to walk back his Twitter threat to respond with deadly force to three days of violent protests in Minneapolis.

After his online comment that "looting leads to shooting" drew a warning from Twitter and widespread condemnation from Democrats, Trump said he understood why the killing had sparked nationwide protests.

But he added that they should not be allowed to turn to "lawless anarchy".

"The looters should not be allowed to drown out the voices of so many peaceful protesters," he said at the White House. "I understand the hurt, I understand the pain."

Trump said he had expressed his sorrow to the family of George Floyd, a black man seen on video gasping for breath while a white police officer knelt on his neck. The officer, Derek Chauvin, was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.

At his Friday briefing, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said he stood with the Minnesota protesters.

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"Nobody is sanctioning the arson, and the thuggery and the burglaries, but the protesters and the anger and the fear and the frustration? Yes. Yes. And the demand is for justice," Cuomo said.

At a news conference, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said New York Police Department officers had been told to respect peaceful protest.

He also had a message for protesters. "If you are angry with the government, if you are angry with the elected leaders, direct that anger to all of us, because if we haven't done enough, we are the ones who should be held responsible," he said. "But the police officer in front of you is a working man or woman just trying to do their job."

AP

More to come