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2,000 National Guard troops will be sent to L.A. amid clashes over immigration raids
The Trump administration said it would send 2,000 National Guard troops into Los Angeles after a second day in which protesters confronted immigration agents during raids of local businesses.
The move marks a major escalation in Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration and came amid concerns from some officials in California.
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Tensions flare outside federal detention facility in downtown Los Angeles
Tensions flared in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night as a group of protesters gathered at around 8 p.m. outside a federal detention facility on Temple Street, according to footage posted to social media.
Video showed flash-bang grenades and tear gas were deployed by law enforcement soon after the start of the protest. Officers with the Los Angeles Police Department congregated outside the building, forming a skirmish line, holding up shields to create a barrier.
Police declared an unlawful assembly, and around 10 p.m., half a dozen protesters were seen being detained by officers, according to KCAL-9 News.
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Two arrested on suspicion of assault as three deputies are injured, officials say
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department said Saturday evening that it had arrested two people as protests raged against a series of immigration enforcement raids that have roiled communities across L.A. County.
The arrests were for alleged assault on a peace officer, according to a spokesperson for the department who added that three deputies were struck and sustained minor injuries from a thrown Molotov cocktail.
“We are planning for long term civil unrest and collaborating with our law enforcement partners,” the spokesperson said on Saturday.
Sheriff’s deputies joined U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in a clash with some of the protesters who had gathered Saturday near a Home Depot in the city of Paramount where day laborers often gather to seek work.
Federal agents deployed flash-bangs and pepper spray during the incident, which prompted the Trump administration to say it would send 2,000 National Guard troops to L.A.
“We will protect your right to peacefully protest, but we will not tolerate violence or destruction of property,” said a statement issued by the Sheriff’s Department Saturday evening. “I urge the community to approach the situation peacefully, as we do not want anyone to be harmed.”
The department added that “the Sheriff’s Department was not involved in any federal law enforcement operations … When federal authorities come under attack and request assistance, we will support them and provide aid. However, this does not mean that we are assisting with their immigration actions or operations.”
It was “normal operations” at the county’s jails, a department spokesperson said Saturday evening.
“We do not take people in custody for solely for federal charges nor do we take people in for civil detainers. If anyone is booked on a felony state charge we may take them into our custody. Typically, no one who was arrested as part of immigration enforcement would come to our jail.”
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Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies use flash bang grenades and tear gas on protesters
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On Saturday night there was a standoff between dozens of protesters and Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies near the Alondra Boulevard exit ramp of the 710 Freeway.
The deputies used flash bang grenades and tear gas on the group. Some demonstrators threw rocks, bottles and shot fireworks at deputies.
At least two drivers used vehicles to scare deputies prompting them to respond again with non-lethal weapons.
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‘We’ll come get you’: L.A’s top federal prosecutor says protesters are being investigated
The top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, Bill Essayli, said two days of protests had not slowed federal enforcement in the region, and he warned that federal authorities were investigating protesters.
“We’ve got lots of video online and both surveillance videos. We have FBI teams working around the clock; we will identify you. We’ll find you, and we’ll come get you,” he told KCAL-9 News on Saturday night.
On Friday federal officials arrested Service Employees International Union California President David Huerta on suspicion of interfering with federal officers.
“They appear to be highly coordinated and sophisticated,” Essayli said, speaking of the protesters. “We saw union activists and organizers be involved in these efforts to resist our operations.”
Immigrant advocates have created a raid response network and have been going out to actions, often offering legal services and observing during protests.
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Hegseth said Marines could be deployed. ‘Deranged,’ Newsom says
Following news that the Trump administration was deploying National Guard troops to L.A., Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Saturday evening that he might choose to send active-duty U.S. Marines from Camp Pendleton “if violence continues.”
Hegseth wrote in a social media post: “Under President Trump, violence & destruction against federal agents & federal facilities will NOT be tolerated. It’s COMMON SENSE. The @DeptofDefense is mobilizing the National Guard IMMEDIATELY to support federal law enforcement in Los Angeles. And, if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert.”
This spurred a strong reaction from California’s governor, who said it constituted “deranged behavior.”
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‘Big legal battles’ in the offing, one expert says
Jessica Levinson, a law professor at Loyola Law School, said Saturday that the Trump administration calling up the National Guard is in no way “routine.” It’s usually done in concert with the state, she noted — “there is an emergency and we need more people to help us put out a fire or rebuild from an earthquake.”
“Certainly there have been instances of civil unrest historically,” she said, but such deployments are “extremely rare” and occur when “the ability of the federal government to enforce federal laws is truly being undermined.”
After Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it would be possible that Marines from Camp Pendleton would be called on, Levinson said: “What we see is Hegseth saying is the full weight of the military will come down on Los Angeles if in their view there is unrest and the inability of ICE to carry out its job.”
“I just think it’s worth repeating that this is a historic moment. I think it’s worth repeating the president is embracing a very broad view of executive power. I think it’s worth repeating there are laws on the books that give presidents broad power. I think where we’re going to see are big legal battles in the next hours, days and weeks about whether or not those broad grants of authority can be used given these circumstances.”
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The legal issues raised by Trump sending the National Guard to L.A.
The Trump administration announced Saturday that National Guard troops were being sent to Los Angeles — an action Gov. Gavin Newsom said he opposed. President Trump is activating the Guard by using powers that have been invoked only rarely.
Trump said in a memo to the Defense and Homeland Security departments that he was calling the National Guard into federal service under a provision called Title 10 to “temporarily protect ICE and other United States Government personnel who are performing Federal functions.”
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Chaos erupts as protesters confront immigration agents at L.A. area Home Depot
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Photos: A fierce pushback on ICE raids in L.A. from protesters, officials
A series of surprise U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps in downtown Los Angeles on Friday prompted fierce pushback from elected officials and protesters, who decried the enforcement actions as “cruel and unnecessary” and said they stoked fear in the immigrant community.
Tensions remained high in downtown into the evening. The Los Angeles Police Department declared an unlawful assembly and ordered about 200 protesters who remained gathered by the Los Angeles Federal Building to disperse around 7 p.m.
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Immigration raids roil L.A., dozens of people detained. What we know so far
Immigration raids Friday led to the arrests of dozens of people and caused hours of chaos in downtown L.A.
Here is what we know so far:
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Chabria: ICE arrested a California union leader. Does Trump understand what that means?
Unions in California are different from those in other places.
More than any state in our troubled country, their ranks are filled with people of color and immigrants. While unions have always been tied closely with the struggles of civil rights, that has become even more pronounced in the years since George Floyd was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis.
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ICE raids across L.A. spark backlash; Trump officials vow to continue operations
Fallout from aggressive U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps in Los Angeles continued Saturday, with fierce pushback from protesters, open sparring between L.A. leadership and federal officials and the Trump administration vowing to send the National Guard to the city to assist with operations.
Border czar Tom Holman told Fox News the Guard would be deployed Saturday night to help with operations. It’s unclear how many Guard members would arrive and exactly what their role would be.