Despite the claim that anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protests in Los Angeles are “peaceful,” footage from the streets of the sanctuary city shows chaotic scenes of civil unrest.
Burning police cars, loud fireworks, mass looting, graffiti, and mobs throwing rocks and bricks at police—the images don’t lie. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell called the violence “disgusting” and said his officers were “overwhelmed” by the protests that erupted over the weekend during a Sunday evening press conference.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who many believe is warming up for a 2028 presidential run, filed an emergency request in federal court Tuesday to block the Trump administration from using the California National Guard and Marines to support the president’s immigration operations and restore order in Los Angeles.
In the request, Newsom alleged that the military was preparing to accompany ICE officials on immigration raids throughout the city.
“Defendants intend to use unlawfully federalized National Guard troops and Marines to accompany federal immigration enforcement officers on raids throughout Los Angeles,” the request reads. “They will work in active concert with law enforcement, in support of a law enforcement mission, and will physically interact with or detain civilians.”
However, on Tuesday, Federal Judge Charles Breyer denied California’s emergency request and set a hearing on Newsom’s request for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, June 12. Breyer, the brother of former Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, was appointed by former President Bill Clinton.
The lawsuit, which names President Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the Department of Defense, outlines why the takeover violates the U.S. Constitution and exceeds the President’s Title 10 authority, “not only because the takeover occurred without the consent or input of the Governor, as federal law requires, but also because it was unwarranted.”
“At no point did these protests necessitate federal intervention, and local and state law enforcement remained in control of the situation,” the lawsuit states. “Local law enforcement, despite no communication or advanced notice from the federal government, responded quickly and did not request federal assistance.”
Newsom, who gave his own address Tuesday night, called Trump’s actions an “assault on democracy” and said “this brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation.”
That’s after he clapped back at threats made by President Trump’s Border Czar Tom Homan, who has said he would not rule out arresting Newsom for obstructing immigration enforcement.
“Come after me, arrest me, let’s just get it over with, tough guy,” Newsom said on MSNBC on Sunday evening. “I don’t give a damn, but I care about my community.”
FOX 5 San Diego reported the governor’s emergency request was in response to a change in orders for the Guard. Members were originally deployed to protect federal buildings.
Newsom’s filing included a declaration from Paul Eck, deputy general counsel in the California Military Department, who said the department was told the Pentagon plans to direct the California National Guard to start holding secure perimeters around areas where raids are taking place and securing streets for immigration agents, FOX 5 reported.
Initially, roughly 2,000 National Guard members were deployed to the city early Sunday. Trump authorized on Monday 700 Marines and another 2,000 National Guard troops to respond to the unrest.
The National Guard response followed a weekend of violence spurred by ICE agents arresting criminals and federal agencies executing search warrants for workforce enforcement operations.
The contentious situation has escalated on the ground and online platforms—with protests spreading across the country. The Los Angeles’ rioters responsible for the destruction and mayhem—starting fires, throwing bricks, launching fireworks and looting businesses—appear to be paid agitators who are well organized, police said.
Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard and Marines prompted the objections of California’s local and state leaders—who continue to spread rumors and support the rioters on social media while falsely touting the protests as “peaceful.”
It’s also set off a war of words between Trump and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Newsom. Trump has called the protests a “full blown assault on peace” and called Bass and Newsom “grossly incompetent” in the crisis.
Bass and Newsom don’t want a military presence in the city, accusing Trump of overstepping his authority. They have claimed Trump is “escalating” an already volatile situation.
Speaking alongside 30 regional mayors at a news conference on Wednesday, Bass blamed the protests on Trump’s immigration raids, which she said “provoked” residents by causing “fear” and “panic.”
On Tuesday, Bass issued an overnight curfew within a small area of the city’s downtown district, after businesses were vandalized and looted.
Los Angeles police said they made “mass arrests” after a fifth day of protests over the immigration action. In a series of statements, the city’s police department said that those detained included 203 people arrested for failure to disperse, 17 for curfew violations, three for possession of a firearm, and one for assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, the BBC reported.
Over the weekend, protesters blocked a major freeway and set cars on fire, along with graffitiing buildings and busting out windows. The more violent protestors dress in black and wear masks and backpacks.
By late Monday, looters vandalized and ransacked several Los Angeles stores after dark, leading to more than 100 arrests during a fourth day of demonstrations over immigration enforcement raids, NBC4 News Los Angeles reported.
While major chains like Apple and Adidas were hit the hardest, the rioters also robbed local businesses.
“We are sick and tired of it,” Paul Scrivano told “Fox & Friends First” this week. “We have no one in charge. I would go so far as to say we have children in charge of Los Angeles right now.”
Scrivano largely placed the blame on Los Angeles leadership and told Fox News that the only way to clamp down on the violence is to arrest the criminals.
“These people don’t care,” Scrivano said. “The only way it’s going to stop is if many troops come in, round them up, put them in the back of trucks and bring them into a cell.”
The demonstrations in the city of 4 million people, with a roughly 50% Hispanic or Latino population, have largely been centered in several blocks of downtown near Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.
As protestors clashed with police, Los Angeles City Hall, the federal building and the city’s Arts District were covered with graffiti and expletives aimed at ICE and anti-police.
People also hurled Molotov cocktails and commercial grade fireworks at officers, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell added.
Protestors blocked the 101 Freeway, a major thoroughfare through the city, on Sunday and Tuesday. When the California Highway Patrol showed up, protesters hurled rocks and insults from the overpass above.
Burned out shells of Waymo autonomous vehicles remained on the city street Monday where they had been engulfed in flames a day earlier, Reuters reported.
