Los Angeles immigration protests: Californian city ordered into curfew as riots spread to Chicago, New York City

Sky News AU

20 hours ago

Parts of Los Angeles are now locked down after an emergency was declared in a bid to stop the violence and looting from the ongoing immigration protests which have spread to major cities in other parts of the United States.
Mayor Karen Bass announced a curfew for the downtown area of the Californian city, starting from Tuesday at 8pm local time (Wednesday 1pm AEST).
It will be in lifted at 6am, but it is expected to continue for "several days".
The curfew has been put in place following the looting and vandalism of at least 23 businesses through the downtown area on Monday night.
Mayor Bass at a press conference said she had considered a partial lock down of the city in recent days, but the past 24-hours was the "tipping point" for her and police.
The area under curfew is about 2.5 square kilometres and includes parts of the Fashion District, Arts District and Chinatown.
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell warned people to stay away from the designated area and that those who ignore the rule will be arrested.
'Let me be clear that this behavior, blocking freeways, city streets and on ramps, refusing to comply with lawful dispersal orders and interfering with public safety operations, is dangerous, unlawful and won't be tolerated," he said.
Those exempt include residents who live in the zone, individuals experiencing homelessness, credentialed media and public safety and emergency personnel.
The demonstrations in Los Angeles has spread to the other side of the country, with rallies also underway in New York City with police clashing with protesters.
Since Saturday, 379 people have been arrested in the City of Angels, including 197 protesters on Tuesday, 67 of which were on the 101 Freeway causing disruptions. 'CURFEW HAS BEEN DECLARED': COPS ENFORCE LOCKDOWN IN LA
Los Angeles police officers have enforced lockdown procedures in pockets of Los Angeles as the curfew came into effect at 8pm, local time.
Sky News host Peter Stefanovic, who is reporting live in LA, described the scenes on the ground the moment the curfew was enacted.
He said the general crowd of people has started to dissipate, but there is still a large number of protesters engaged in the demonstrations.
In the background where Stefanovic stood, a line of officers from the Los Angeles Police Department could be seen moving forward on the street as one yelled out to the public.
"A police officer just is saying 'curfew has been declared,'" Stefanovic said.
At one stage, a police officer could be seen physically forcing a person back.
The sound of flash grenades could also be heard in the background - a mechanism which is being used by law enforcement agencies in an attempt to break up the crowd.
Stefanovic said he has seen a truck from the National Guard, but is yet to come across any members of the Marines who have been deployed to parts of LA.
"It's mostly LAPD. You've got members of the National Guard here as well," Stefanovic said.
"I haven't seen Marines ... I know there are hundreds of them supposed to be around here somewhere."
Californian Governor Gavin Newsom, who President Donald Trump threatened to arrest amid the war of words over the deployment of the National Guard, was forced to abandon a press conference shortly after police spoke due to technical issues.
Governor Newsom appeared minutes later, criticising the leader of the free world for going "beyond its stated intent to go after violent and serious criminals".
"His agents are arresting dishwashers, gardeners, day labourers and seamstresses. That's just weakness masquerading as strength. Donald Trump is not protecting our communities but traumatising our communities. That seems to be the point," he said.
"If some of us could be snatched off the streets without a warrant, based only on suspicion or skin colour, then none of us are safe. Authoritarian regimes begin by targeting people who are least able to defend themselves, but they do not stop there.
"Trump and his loyalists, they thrive on division because it allows them to take more power and exert even more control. And by the way, he's not opposed to lawlessness and violence, as long as it serves him. What more evidence do we need than January 6."
It comes after President Trump doubled down on his decision to deploy the National Guard, claiming Los Angeles "would be on fire" if he did not act swiftly.
Over the weekend, he ordered 2,000 federal troops to the Californian city to quell violent demonstrations following the arrests of more than 40 people by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents over alleged immigration violations.
A further 700 US Marines have also been activated and arrived to the city overnight. Trump defends deploying troops
President Trump on Tuesday (local time) insisted it was the right move to federalise troops, despite criticism from key Los Angeles officials and law enforcement.
"Take a look at what is happening. There were certain areas of Los Angeles last night, you could have called it an insurrection," the commander-in-chief said.
"Look, if we didn't get involved, right now, Los Angeles would be burning... Los Angeles right now would be on fire, and we have it in great shape."
He also said he would consider invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807, which allows the military to suppress rebellion and enforce the law in certain situations.
"If there's an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We'll see. But I can tell you last night was terrible, and the night before that was terrible," the President said.
Immigration raids are set to continue across the country as part of the administration's crackdown, with a goal of arresting at least 3,000 migrants each day.
President Trump warned any riots will lead to a response of "equal or greater force".
The some 300 National Guards on the ground at the moment have a minor role in downtown Los Angeles, which is to protect federal buildings and activities.
But the move does not sit well with the city's key officials.
Mayor Bass earlier, again, criticised President Trump for sending in the National Guard and also questioned the role of the US Marines.
'People have asked me, 'What are the Marines going to do when they get here?' That's a good question. I have no idea,' she said at a press conference.
Mayor Bass said the city knows "how to take care of these issues ourselves".
"When you said things have gotten under control because of the National Guard, I gave you an example where the National Guard wasn't even here and he (President Trump) was tweeting that out. They are stationary at the federal building protecting the building they are not out doing crowd control or anything like that," she said.
"So I don't know how he could say that the National Guard is who saved the day. Who saved the day are our law enforcement agencies."
Mayor Bass told reporters she has been in contact with people in the Trump administration and is hoping to speak to the commander-in-chief over the phone soon.
'I want to tell him to stop the raids. I want to tell him that this is a city of immigrants. I want to tell him that if you want to devastate the economy of the city of Los Angeles, then attack the immigrant population," she said, before later making a stunning claim.
'I think we're an experiment, because if you can do this to the nation's second largest city, maybe the administration is hoping that this will be a signal to everybody everywhere to fear them. That your federal government that historically has protected you can come in and take over."
President Trump - who spent Tuesday on the other side of the country in North Carolina to watch a military demonstration at Fort Bragg as part of the US Army's 250th anniversary - called Californian Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Bass "incompetent".
Protests have been decreasing in size in recent days.
On Monday, Los Angeles police arrested more than 100 people, most on the suspicion for failing to disperse and assault with a deadly weapon, according to CNN.
Two officers were left reportedly injured during the chaos.
Mayor Bass insisted demonstrators who are vandalising and being violent will be detained and prosecuted, adding those who did those acts "have another agenda".
She is also looking into measures such as nightly curfews to limit the chaos.
It is understood at least one rally will go ahead on the fifth day of protests.