Australian Reporter Hit by NonLethal Round During LA Protests
Australian reporter Lauren Tomas was hit in the leg by a nonlethal round on Sunday while covering the ICE protests for Australian station 9News.
Video shows Tomas reporting live when an officer behind her raises their non-lethal gun and fires a round at close range. Tomasi, who doesn't appear to be wearing personal protective equipment, yelps and grabs her lower leg as she and her cameraman quickly move away from the police line.
"You just (expletive) shot the reporter," a voice off-camera can be heard shouting.
Tomasi assured her crew she was okay, saying, "Yeah, I'm good, I'm good."
Chaos erupted in Downtown Los Angeles as immigration protests got out of hand for the third straight day.Protesters faced off with police all day Sunday, with things getting intense at times. People were seen using random items to protect themselves from police, while other protesters took aim at CHP officers and their stranded patrol cars on the 101 Freeway.
The group threw things and tried setting the patrol units on fire.
All this while Gov. Gavin Newsom continued his public criticism of President Donald Trump and the White House, blaming the administration for exploiting the situation unfolding in Southern California"I'm okay, my cameraman Jimmy and I are both safe. This is just one of the unfortunate realities of reporting on these kinds of incidents," she said later.
9News is part of one of Australia's largest media companies which operates across television, radio, print and digital channels.
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