Dozens Of Journalists Targeted, Shot, Detained While Covering LA Protests, Press Org Says
Shocking video and photos taken amid the ongoing immigration protests in Los Angeles show journalists and news crews being shot, detained and forced off public property by law enforcement, raising concerns of excessive force and First Amendment rights violations.
There have been more than 30 incidents of police violence against journalists as of Tuesday, including 20 injuries, at least five of which required emergency room or urgent care visits, said Adam Rose, the press rights chair with the Los Angeles Press Club, which released a statement Monday urging an end to the targeting of journalists whose work is constitutionally protected.
The list of injuries includes a freelance photojournalist requiring emergency surgery Sunday night after being shot in the leg with a three-inch piece of plastic that he believes was designed to be shot and explode above a crowd.
Graphic photos shared with HuffPost show a gaping wound in Nick Stern's right thigh that he said has left him unable to walk or move without assistance.
'Why this device was shot at human, kind of, waist high level, I do not know. The people around me at that time was doing nothing more than waving Mexican flags,' he told HuffPost.
Stern, who said he has three decades of experience photographing public protests, including in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the George Floyd protests in 2020, expressed concern that people may die from the excessive use of force that he witnessed and experienced firsthand.
'I never thought for one moment that I'd actually have to be fearful of law enforcement during a public protest but that seems to be where the danger to journalists comes from,' he said.
Also Sunday, photographer Toby Canham said he was shot in the forehead with a rubber bullet while snapping pictures of law enforcement gathered along a highway.
The British Army veteran, who was on assignment for the New York Post, photographed the projectile flying at him split seconds before it hit him in the head. He was treated for whiplash and neck pain at a local hospital Monday, the Post reported.
'It's a real shame. I completely understand being in the position where you could get injured, but at the same time, there was no justification for even aiming the rifle at me and pulling the trigger, so I'm a bit pissed off about that, to be honest,' he told the paper, while sharing photos of his bloodied head.
Australian broadcast journalist Lauren Tomasi had just finished reporting live from Los Angeles' downtown area on Sunday when her news outlet, 9 News, reported that an officer turned his gun toward her and fired a rubber bullet from close range. Video shows Tomasi jumping and yelling in pain.
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs immediately joined in on condemning the shooting, stating 'that all journalists should be able to do their work safely.'
CNN's Jason Carroll was also reporting live from the scene on Monday when cameras captured him being detained by officers with his hands bound behind his back. Another video posted by reporter Sergio Olmos shows Carroll and a videographer being violently shoved by police while they're standing along a sidewalk.
Similar videos posted on social media show journalists being shoved, shot and pushed out of public areas despite audibly identifying themselves as members of the press.
The LA Press Club joined several press freedom organizations Monday expressing concern to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that federal officers are violating journalists' First Amendment rights while they cover the protests.
'In some cases, federal officers appear to have deliberately targeted journalists who were doing nothing more than their job covering the news,' a letter addressed to Noem by the organizations states.
'Under the First Amendment, journalists who are merely reporting on events and not interfering with federal operations cannot be subject to general dispersal orders and 'cannot be punished for the violent acts of others,' and the 'proper response' to any unlawful conduct is 'to arrest those who actually engage in such conduct, rather than to suppress legitimate First Amendment conduct as a prophylactic measure,'' the letter continues.
Rose told HuffPost they have not received a response from DOH as of Tuesday. Noem's office also did not immediately respond to HuffPost's request for comment.
Trump Sets National Guard On Los Angeles As Protesters Counter Immigration Raids: Live Updates
CNN Journalist Reports On Being 'Detained' By Police As It Happens
Reporter Gets Hit By Rubber Bullet At LA Protest, Sparking Shock Allegation
FBI Puts LA Protester On 'Most Wanted' List As Government Threatens Crackdown
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