President Donald Trump defended his choice to ship the Nationwide Guard troops to Los Angeles to quash protests that turned violent, saying in a social media put up on Sunday that “if we had not achieved so, Los Angeles would have been fully obliterated.”
Trump alleged the nation’s second largest metropolis, which covers greater than 500 sq. miles, had been “invaded and occupied by unlawful aliens and criminals” and that he had directed Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth and Lawyer Common Pam Bondi to coordinate with all related companies to “take all such actions essential to liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion, and put an finish to those Migrant riots.”
Whereas Trump has painted Los Angeles as being below siege and uncontrolled, many of the demonstrations this previous weekend over his administration’s crackdown on unlawful immigration has been concentrated in downtown Los Angeles close to the federal constructing and federal detention middle. Different protests have additionally occurred exterior of the downtown space, one within the Los Angeles County metropolis of Paramount, about 14 miles from downtown, and one other in Compton, which is subsequent to Paramount, and about 12 miles from downtown LA, in keeping with native regulation enforcement.
A demonstrator holding flowers walks previous law enforcement officials as protesters conflict with regulation enforcement within the streets surrounding the federal constructing throughout a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025.
Ringo Chiu/AFP through Getty Pictures
In the meantime the remainder of Los Angeles appeared to go about life as regular over the weekend. Town’s annual Satisfaction Parade even occurred on Sunday with out incident in Hollywood about 7 miles from downtown.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and California Gov. Gavin Newsom have accused Trump of constructing sensational public claims about how widespread the violence has been, and each have mentioned the Los Angeles police and sheriff’s departments may deal with the unrest on their very own.
“He flamed the fires and illegally acted” by mobilizing the Nationwide Guard go LA with out the conscent of native and state officers, Newsom mentioned of the president in a press release on Monday posted on social media. “The order he signed doesn’t simply apply to CA. It’ll permit him to enter ANY STATE and do the identical factor. We’re suing him.”
On Monday, a U.S. official confirmed that 700 Marines in California have been ordered to help in Los Angeles they usually’re anticipated to reach over the subsequent 24 hours, a U.S. official confirmed.
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell has decried the escalation of violence in the course of the protests, saying officers had been focused with Molotov cocktails, fireworks and rocks.
However he additionally mentioned Monday that the arrival of the military troops in Los Angeles “presents a major logistical and operation problem for these of us charged with safeguarding this metropolis.”
Protesters conflict with regulation enforcement officers within the streets surrounding the federal constructing throughout a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025.
Ringo Chiu/AFP through Getty Pictures
“The Los Angeles Police Division, alongside our mutual assist companions, has a long time of expertise managing large-scale public demonstrations, and we stay assured in our capacity to take action professionally and successfully. That mentioned, our high precedence is the protection of each the general public and the officers on the bottom,” McDonnell mentioned.
At a information convention Monday night, because the protests entered their fourth evening — with some tense confrontations between protesters and police resulting in the firing of much less deadly munitions by police — Bass insisted town may deal with the unrest by itself.
Requested in regards to the deployment of the Marines, Bass responded incredulously.
“We did not want the Nationwide Guard,” she instructed reporters. “Why on earth — What are they going to do? Are you aware what the Nationwide Guard is doing now? They’re guarding two buildings. They’re guarding the federal constructing right here in downtown they usually’re guarding the federal constructing in Westwood. That is what they’re doing. In order that they want Marines on high of it, I do not perceive that.”
Trump bypassed Newsom and activated 2,100 California Nationwide Guard troops, together with 1,700 on the bottom in Los Angeles as of Monday evening and the rest on standby to be despatched there, the U.S. Northern Command mentioned in a social media post lafe Monday evening. It marks the primary time a president has mobilized troops with no governor’s consent since President Lyndon B. Johnson did so in 1965, when he despatched Nationwide Guard troops to Alabama to guard civil rights activists marching from Selma to Montgomery.
Protest erupts
The protests erupted on Friday in downtown Los Angeles after phrase filtered into the group that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) brokers have been conducting raids on a number of areas within the downtown space with out the consent of metropolis officers, together with a Dwelling Depot within the Westlake neighborhood close to downtown. The raids resulted within the arrests of 40 individuals, 35 of them Mexican residents, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum mentioned on Sunday.
Dozens of protesters started gathering within the Trend District of downtown, the place one of many raids occurred at an attire enterprise, officers mentioned. Round 3 p.m. native time on Friday, aerial footage taken by ABC Los Angeles station KABC, confirmed what gave the impression to be ICE brokers loading two white vans with individuals in handcuffs. Because the vans left the attire enterprise, protesters tried unsuccessfully to cease them, together with one particular person who was seen mendacity down the highway within the path of one of many vans.
Because the raids have been unfolding on Friday, Mayor Bass, issued a put up on X, condemning ICE’s actions, writing, “we is not going to stand for this.”
Demonstrators smash the windshield of a automobile subsequent to a burning Waymo automobile as protesters conflict with regulation enforcement within the streets surrounding the federal constructing throughout a protest following federal immigration operations in Los Angeles, June 8, 2025.
Ringo Chiu/AFP through Getty Pictures
Round 6 p.m. on Friday, crowds gathered exterior the Edward R. Roybal Federal Constructing and the U.S. Courthouse downtown and started vandalizing the buildings, spay portray profanities directed at ICE on the facade and clashing with ICE brokers. Federal authorities requested the LAPD to help round 6:30 p.m., nevertheless it took metropolis officers about an hour to reach on the scene on account of “vital site visitors congestions, and the presence of demonstrators, and notably, by the truth that federal brokers had deployed irritants into the group previous to LAPD’s arrival.”
The LAPD declared the protest an “illegal meeting” quickly after officers arrived on scene on Friday evening, writing on social media that “officers are reporting {that a} small group of violent people are throwing giant items of concrete” and warning protesters that “the usage of much less deadly munitions has been approved by the Incident Commander” to disperse the group.
“Inside 55 minutes of receiving the decision, we started to disperse the hostile and riotous crowd,” the LAPD mentioned.
Video confirmed police in riot gear confronting protesters with batons and firing what gave the impression to be tear gasoline canisters and flash bangs on the demonstators.
Across the identical time, a protest broke out in neighboring Compton, the place a automobile was set ablaze on the street close to the enduring Dale’s Donuts signal, in keeping with video taken on the scene.
Demonstration strikes to Paramount
On Saturday, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Division obtained calls round 10:15 a.m. {that a} “vital” crowd was gathering in Paramount and obstructing site visitors and that deputies noticed the presence of federal brokers within the space.
“Because the state of affairs escalated, the group of protesters grew to become more and more agitated, throwing objects and exhibiting violent conduct towards federal brokers and deputy sheriffs,” the sheriff’s division mentioned in a press release. “In response, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division (LASD) requested extra assets countywide, deploying extra deputies to take care of order.”
The sheriff’s division mentioned it responded to the scene to guard federal brokers below assault, however emphasised, “This doesn’t imply that we’re aiding with their immigration actions or operations.”
Bass mentioned that there have been no ICE raids in Paramount or wherever else in Los Angeles County on Saturday. She mentioned the constructing that protesters gathered close to was getting used as a staging space for federal assets.
California Freeway Patrol automobiles, some broken, are lined up alongside the 101 freeway after officers cleared protesters from the world, June 8, 2025 in Los Angeles.
Mario Tama/Getty Pictures
The LAPD mentioned 29 individuals have been arrested throughout Saturday’s protest, largely for failing to disperse, however general it mentioned in a press release that demonstrations throughout town of Los Angeles on Saturday “remained peaceable, and we commend all those that exercised their First Modification rights responsibly.”
Trump deploys Nationwide Guard
On Saturday evening, Trump signed a presidential memorandum authorizing the deployment of Nationwide Guard members to Los Angeles, saying it was essential to “deal with the lawlessness” in Los Angeles.
Newsom referred to as Trump’s transfer, “purposely inflammatory and can solely escalate tensions.”
Bass agreed and issued a plea to the White Home to reverse the choice.
“Deploying federalized troops on the heels of those raids is a chaotic escalation,” Bass mentioned in a press release posted on social media on Saturday afternoon. “The worry persons are feeling in our metropolis proper now may be very actual — it is felt in our communities and inside our households and it places our neighborhoods in danger. That is the very last thing that our metropolis wants, and I urge protestors to stay peaceable.”
A protester throws a scooter at a police vehical close to the metropolitan detention middle of downtown Los Angeles, June 8, 2025.
Jae C. Hong/AP
Newsom referred to as the president’s choice “an alarming abuse of energy.”
Round 2:18 a.m. native time time on Sunday, the LAPD issued a site visitors advisory, reporting that demonstrators have been approaching the Metropolitan Detention Heart in downtown Los Angeles and warned that the illegal meeting order declared on Friday was nonetheless in impact. Across the identical time, the LAPD mentioned it obtained experiences that demonstrators have been leaping onto the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation tracks close to the Little Tokyo Prepare Station downtown, inflicting all trains to be halted as officers reponded.
The Nationwide Guard started arriving in Los Angeles round 4 a.m. on Sunday, taking over a place exterior the Roybal federal constructing.
A police officer fires a delicate spherical close to the metropolitan detention middle of downtown Los Angeles, June 8, 2025, following final evening’s immigration raid protest.
Eric Thayer/AP
Protesters who defied the order to remain away, assembled in entrance of the Roybal federal constructing and detention middle, heckling Nationwide Guard members and police inside earshot. Round 3:30 p.m., the LAPD issued one other site visitors advisory {that a} group of demonstrators was marching into the downtown space.
Later Sunday, demonstrators started approaching to 101 Freeway and finally obtained onto the southbound lanes of the freeway, prompting authorities to shut the freeway in each instructions, police mentioned.
The protest quickly devolved into demonstrators standing on an overpass throwing concrete, bottles and different objects at officers trying to take away demonstrators from the freeway.
Members of the Los Angeles Metro Police conflict with demonstrators throughout a protest towards federal immigration sweeps in downtown Los Angeles, June 8, 2025.
Daniel Cole/Reuters
Because the protest grew extra rowdy, a number of Waymo autonomous automobiles have been set on hearth within the downtown space, prompting the corporate to halt service to downtown LA. Police mentioned protesters threw fireworks at officers in the course of the standoff and police mentioned shops have been looted within the downtown space.
Officers mentioned two LAPD officers have been injured by motorcyclists trying to breach a skirmish line police had established.
The LAPD mentioned 21 individuals have been arrested on Sunday on expenses starting from tried homicide with a Molotov cocktail to looting to failure to disperse. The California Freeway Patrol mentioned 19 individuals have been arrested for disobeying orders to disperse from the 101 Freeway.
The LAPD introduced on Monday that the police pressure was occurring “Tactical Alert,” that means all personnel are to stay on responsibility as town braced for one more night of protests.
As protests in Los Angeles entered their fourth evening, photographs from the scene confirmed tense moments as demonstrators confronted authorities.
At one level, police mentioned protesters close to Temple Road and Los Angeles Road in downtown LA started throwing objects at police and police approved the usage of “much less deadly munitions” in response.
