(COVER PHOTO: Daniel Cole/Reuters via CNN Newsource)
(CNN) — President Donald Trump has signed a presidential memorandum deploying 2,000 National Guardsmen to Los Angeles to disperse protests that began in response to immigration raids, the White House said in a statement Saturday night.
Immigration authorities and demonstrators have clashed for two days in the Los Angeles area, with unrest beginning Friday after dozens of people were detained by federal immigration agents across different locations. The arrests come amid Trump’s crackdown on immigration, which has involved waves of raids and deportations across the country.
Law enforcement in riot gear deployed tear gas and flash bangs to disperse crowds in downtown Los Angeles and the city of Paramount over the two days, with authorities reporting multiple arrests Saturday.
“These operations are essential to halting and reversing the invasion of illegal criminals into the United States. In the wake of this violence, California’s feckless Democrat leaders have completely abdicated their responsibility to protect their citizens,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom called the deployment of troops “purposefully inflammatory” and warned it would only escalate tensions.
“This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust,” Newsom said.
Officials from the Trump administration described protesters as “lawless rioters.” The Los Angeles Police Department, meanwhile, said Saturday’s demonstrations within the city “remained peaceful” and “events concluded without incident.”
Elsewhere in Los Angeles County, a crowd of protesters in Paramount became “increasingly agitated, throwing objects and exhibiting violent behavior toward federal agents and deputy sheriffs,” the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department said in an advisory Saturday night. In response, the department requested additional resources countywide and deployed additional deputies.
In nearby Compton, a vehicle was set on fire where protesters began to gather, video from CNN affiliate KABC showed. On Friday, video showed several projectiles being thrown at officers equipped with body armor and protective shields outside a Los Angeles federal detention center.
Leavitt argued that Trump called in the guardsmen to “address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester” and “violent mobs attacked ICE Officers and Federal Law Enforcement Agents.”
Trump invoked his authority under Title 10, which allows the president to call in the National Guard as necessary to repel invasion, suppress rebellion or execute laws. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said active duty marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized if the unrest continues.
Protesters face off with police
The White House’s move is facing criticism from some in law enforcement. Many see the deployment of the National Guard as an overreaction that may backfire and only provoke additional agitators, one senior law enforcement source involved in responding to the Los Angeles protests said.
Dozens of potentially violent demonstrators were observed by law enforcement around Los Angeles as of Saturday evening and law enforcement officers were actively working to bring them under control, according to the source.
Videos of the scene Friday show law enforcement officers in riot gear, wielding batons, holding shields and throwing smoke bombs into the crowd. Protesters chanted “Free them all” and held signs with messages including “Full Rights for All Immigrants” and “Stop the Deportations.” Video shows several officers in riot gear pinning at least one person to the ground.
Other videos show the detention center sprayed with anti-ICE graffiti, with some protesters blocking LAPD vehicles close by.
Further investigations
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Saturday on social media the bureau was investigating alleged instances of demonstrators obstructing immigration enforcement operations.
“Insurrectionists carrying foreign flags are attacking immigration enforcement officers, while one half of America’s political leadership has decided that border enforcement is evil,” Vice President JD Vance said in a post on X Saturday night.
Mayor Karen Bass said many in Los Angeles County are fearful following recent federal immigration enforcement actions. She added that reports of “unrest” are “deeply concerning.”
“We’ve been in direct contact with officials in Washington, D.C., and are working closely with law enforcement to find the best path forward,” Bass said in a statement Saturday night. “Everyone has the right to peacefully protest, but let me be clear: violence and destruction are unacceptable, and those responsible will be held accountable.”
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said it was working to ensure the safety of the public by managing traffic and controlling crowds.
The response to the protests drew a conflict between ICE and the Los Angeles Police Department.
“Our brave officers were vastly outnumbered, as over 1,000 rioters surrounded and attacked a federal building,” ICE said in a statement, saying LAPD took two hours to respond.
But the LAPD said it mobilized personnel and acted “as swiftly as conditions safely allowed.”
Sowing a ‘sense of terror’
Bass, the Los Angeles mayor, characterized the immigration arrests as “mass chaos,” according to CNN affiliate KABC. The mayor said she hadn’t been told about the raids in advance. “It sows a sense of terror throughout the community,” she said. “ICE was literally chasing people down the street.”
The Associated Press reported at least 44 people were arrested by federal immigration agents. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at three locations, according to a spokesperson for Homeland Security Investigations.
The federal law enforcement activity came on the same day multiple sources told CNN the Trump administration is preparing for “large-scale” cancellation of federal funds for California.
CNN has reached out to DHS for further information.
One of the Friday raids was in the city’s Fashion District, where agents served a search warrant after a judge determined a business was allegedly using fictitious documents for some of its workers, US Attorney’s office spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy told CNN.
Bass said Friday’s immigration arrests were different from previous, more organized actions.
“I’ve been really worried about this from the beginning, and as far as I know, this is the first time this has happened in our city like this,” she told KABC. “We know ICE has been here, but it’s been for targeted arrests; this was just mass chaos.”
“It sows a sense of chaos in our city, and a sense of terror, and it’s just unacceptable.”
The American Civil Liberties Union called on “elected officials to uphold their commitment to all Angelenos — immigrants and non-immigrants alike — by taking all action necessary to grind this oppressive and vile paramilitary operation to a halt and keep our city safe and whole” in a Friday statement.
Union leader arrested
David Huerta, the president of the Service Employees International Union California, was arrested by federal agents after allegedly attempting to obstruct their access at a worksite, US Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli said in a post on X.
“Let me be clear: I don’t care who you are—if you impede federal agents, you will be arrested and prosecuted,” Essayli said.
After being treated for injuries from his arrest, Huerta released a statement condemning the citywide raids.
“Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals,” he said. “We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice. This is injustice. And we all have to stand on the right side of justice.”
“No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action,” Newsom said in a statement responding to Huerta’s arrest, describing the union president as a “respected leader, a patriot and an advocate for working people.”
‘Eroding trust’
Protesters gathered outside the Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles at roughly 4 p.m. Friday, CNN affiliate KABC reported. At one point, hundreds of activists began marching toward a detention facility on Temple Street.
Families and friends who had loved ones taken by immigration authorities visited the detention center to learn more about their status, KABC reported.
A young woman who spoke with the outlet said she went to the building in tears after her father was taken by federal agents.
The LAPD declared an unlawful assembly around 7 p.m. and warned demonstrators were subject to arrest if they remained in the area.
Aerial footage from KABC shows law enforcement throwing smoke bombs on a street to disperse people so they could make way for SUVs and military-style vehicles.
“While the LAPD will continue to have a visible presence in all our communities to ensure public safety, we will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations, nor will the LAPD try to determine an individual’s immigration status,” Police Chief Jim McDonnell said in a statement about the immigration enforcement activities.
“I want everyone, including our immigrant community, to feel safe calling the police in their time of need and know that the LAPD will be there for you without regard to one’s immigration status.”
Newsom said in a Saturday statement, “Continued chaotic federal sweeps, across California, to meet an arbitrary arrest quota are as reckless as they are cruel.”
“Donald Trump’s chaos is eroding trust, tearing families apart, and undermining the workers and industries that power America’s economy,” the governor said.
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