Federal agent injured in clash with protesters in downtown L.A. during student walkout – Los Angeles Times
Three federal agents were injured during a clash with protesters in downtown Los Angeles on Friday, authorities said.
The incident occurred as scores of local students walked out of class in protest of the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Between 200 and 300 protesters gathered Friday afternoon outside of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement building when some in the crowd began throwing objects at law enforcement, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security.
One ICE officer was hit in the head with a rock. Two Federal Protective Services officers also were injured; one is being hospitalized with a concussion and the other suffered a cut over his eye, Homeland Security said. No arrests have been made.
“Assaulting federal law enforcement is a felony and a federal crime,” the spokesperson said. “Secretary Noem has been clear: Anyone who assaults or obstructs law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The Los Angeles Police Department previously said protesters were fighting with federal agents on Alameda Street between Temple and Aliso streets when an agent was injured. The suspects accused of attacking the agent then blended into the march, which headed southbound toward 1st Street, police said.
The Los Angeles Fire Department received a call for an injury at 535 Alameda St. at 1:34 p.m. and took one patient to a hospital.
Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in L.A., said federal officers are being sent to downtown federal buildings in response to an uptick in violence.
“I have directed them to make arrests on the spot for anyone committing a crime, regardless of whether they are an adult or a teenager,” he said in a statement on social media. “If arrested, you will spend the weekend in a federal detention facility.”
Helicopter footage captured by KTLA showed protesters rushing onto the grounds of the Metropolitan Detention Center. Some were seen shoving and throwing objects at the agents, who used Tasers and batons in an attempt to move the group back onto the sidewalk.
Friday’s protest is the latest in a series of demonstrations over immigration actions and deportations being carried out by federal agents across the country.
On Jan. 30, thousands of students across Southern California walked out of class to join a national day of protests over immigration crackdowns. Hundreds of students in downtown L.A. participated in a similar march Jan. 20 as part of the “Free America” national walkout.
