British photographer needed emergency surgery after he was shot by sponge bullet during LA protests

Independent

a day ago

A British news photographer required emergency surgery after he was struck by a sponge bullet while covering protests in Los Angeles.
Nick Stern was documenting a confrontation between anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) demonstrators and law enforcement outside a Home Depot in Paramount, a city known as a hiring spot for day labourers.
During the stand-off, a 14mm 'sponge bullet' hit Stern's thigh and injured him.
"My initial concern was, were they firing live rounds?" Stern, 60, told the PA news agency.
"Some of the protesters came and helped me, and they ended up carrying me, and I noticed that there was blood pouring down my leg."
Mr Stern, who emigrated to the US in 2007, was treated by a medic who urged him to go to hospital. Mr Stern added he passed out from the pain.
He is now recovering at Long Beach Memorial Medical Centre following emergency surgery.
Mr Stern said he typically makes himself 'as visible as possible' while working in hostile situations.
'That way you're less likely to get hit because they know you're media,' he said.
It is the second incident of its kind for Mr Stern, who said he sustained 'substantial' bruising after being hit by another live round during the George Floyd protests in 2020.
'The communities in LA are very tight and very close-knit,' Mr Stern said.
'So an outside organisation like Ice coming in and removing – whatever you want to call it, removing, kidnapping, abducting people from the community – is not going to go down well at all.'
It comes after US President Donald Trump announced plans to deploy 2,000 National Guard troops to California to quell the protests, which began on Friday in downtown LA before spreading.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the move was 'essential to halting and reversing the invasion of illegal criminals into the United States'.
The decision drew sharp criticism from Democratic politicians, including California Governor Gavin Newsom, who called the move 'purposefully inflammatory'.
Demonstrators have been protesting the Trump administration's immigration raids, which last month aimed to detain as many as 3,000 people per day.
Despite his injury, Mr Stern says he is eager to return to work.
'I intend, as soon as I am well enough, to get back out there,' he said.
'This is too important and it needs documenting.'