The rapper closed his remarks by saying peace and justice are intertwined.

"Let's go out and get justice," he said. "Let's do it the right way."

Later at the police station, about 40 protesters gathered and at one point blocked traffic in the street. Police and Missouri National guardsmen gave them at least three verbal warnings, and then came out, formed a line, and most of the protesters moved to the sidewalk across the street.

One woman refused to move and was arrested. A few minutes later, a man moved into the street, screaming at police, and he was arrested.

At this point, protesters lit an American flag on fire but because of the dampness outside, the flag didn't burn well. Two national guardsmen, Maj. Lance Dell and Sgt. 1st Class Eric Allison, walked across the street to pick up the pieces.

“They're treating it as trash,” Dell said. “It's not trash to us. We're not going to let them throw it on the ground and leave it there.”

The guardsmen walked back across the street next to the fire station, where they attempted to neatly fold the remains of the flag.

David Carson and Valerie Schremp Hahn of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.

Shake off your afternoon slump with the oft-shared and offbeat news of the day, hand-brewed by our online news editor, Mandy St. Amand. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.