LOS ANGELES, CALIF. — What began as peaceful immigration policy protests on June 6 has escalated into a national political crisis, with violent clashes, arrests, looted businesses, burning Waymo cars, a smashed government building, nighttime curfews, and an epic legal showdown between California officials and President Donald Trump fueled by partisan flames of political division.

The protests, sparked by opposition to federal immigration enforcement operations being conducted in Downtown LA’s Garment District and in the City of Paramount, have not all remained peaceful. On June 9, the Los Angeles Police Department reported more than 100 arrests in downtown Los Angeles, citing looting as a major cause. By June 10, the New York Times reported more than 160 arrests had been made in the city of 3.8 million.

Businesses such as Apple and Adidas were ransacked, with video footage showing masked rioters storming stores. Fox News published images of fireworks exploding in the streets during the looting of an Apple store, while one individual reportedly broke a window to escape.

Violence extended to government property as well. Windows were shattered at LAPD Headquarters, underscoring growing tensions between law enforcement and protesters. 

In response, federal prosecutors are turning to social media to identify violent actors.

The unrest has drawn national attention, with sharply divided political reactions. Fox News has labeled the events “Anti-ICE riots,” while The Guardian criticized the President’s “authoritarian” move to deploy thousands of troops. Trump has said he is open to invoking the Insurrection Act, arguing that “violent, insurrectionist mobs” would have “burned Los Angeles to the ground” had federal forces not intervened.

Both the National Guard and a Marine battalion have been mobilized in Los Angeles. The head of the Marine Corps confirmed that troops are on standby, while the National Guard presence has already grown to 4,000. When asked about the cost to the Department of Defense, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth testified it would cost the Pentagon $134 million.

California officials responded to Trump’s nationalization of the Guard and deployment of Marines with swift legal action. On June 9, Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit challenging what they called the “unlawful” deployment of federal troops. They argue the President’s actions violate the U.S. Constitution and state sovereignty

On June 10, the Californians returned to court seeking a temporary restraining order to block military personnel from accompanying federal agents on immigration raids. The case was assigned to U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer. State officials had requested an emergency ruling by 1 p.m. Pacific Time on June 10. The judge in the case of Newsom v Trump (25-4870) did not issue an emergency ruling. Instead, Judge Breyer has asked Trump’s lawyers to file an opposition to the motion for a temporary restraining order by 11:00 A.M. on June 11, and for Newsom’s lawyers to file a response to that opposition by 9:00 A.M. on June 12.  The Court will then hold a hearing on Newsom’s motion in open court at 1:30 P.M. on June 12. Members of the public may remotely access the hearing through this Zoom link. 

Governor Newsom called the military presence “unprecedented” and warned it “threatens the very core of our democracy.” 

In a televised address on the evening of June 11, Newsom said that President Trump’s decision to deploy military forces to immigration protests in Los Angeles has brought the country to the brink of authoritarian rule. 

“Authoritarian regimes begin by targeting people who are least able to defend themselves,” Newsom said in his speech. “But they do not stop there. Trump and his loyalists thrive on division because it allows them to take more power and exert even more control.”

Calling it a “perilous moment” for democracy and the rule of law, Newsom urged Americans to push back against the president’s actions. “California may be first, but it clearly won’t end here,” he said, speaking from a studio in Los Angeles. “Other states are next. Democracy is next.” “Democracy is under assault right before our eyes. The moment we’ve feared has arrived,” he added.

Newsom said President Trump had “inflamed a combustible situation” by taking over California’s National Guard, and by calling up 4,000 troops and 700 Marines. “Trump is pulling a military dragnet all across Los Angeles,” Newsom continued. “Well beyond his stated intent to just go after violent and serious criminals, his agents are arresting dishwashers, gardeners, day laborers and seamstresses.”

“This is not just immoral—it’s illegal and dangerous,” California AG Bonta said. “The President is looking for any pretense to place military forces on American streets to intimidate and quiet those who disagree with him.”

House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi slammed Trump for inconsistent and self-congratulatory messaging, while Mayor Karen Bass pushed back on Trump’s claims that federal forces had restored calm. “The National Guard wasn’t even here,” she said, referring to the President thanking them for restoring order on June 7, when they didn’t arrive until June 8.

Congressional Democrats accused Trump of inciting the unrest for political gain. California’s lieutenant governor said the unrest was “generated by Donald Trump.”

Meanwhile, Republicans have countered with aggressive rhetoric, most coming from the President of the United States himself. 

“A once great American City, Los Angeles, has been invaded and occupied by Illegal Aliens and Criminals,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on June 8.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller wrote in an X post: “America was invaded by illegal aliens. Americans voted to end the invasion. Democrat rioters are now waging violent insurrection to overturn the election result and continue the invasion.”

Miller shared an image of a rioter waving a Mexican flag. Miller wrote “According to Governor Newsom, this is what the Founders were fighting for.”

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said Governor Newsom “ought to be tarred and feathered.” On Capitol Hill, Secretary Hegseth defended the use of force, stating that ICE “ought to be able to do its job” across the country, including in Los Angeles.

As the legal and political battles unfold, everyday life in Los Angeles continues to be disrupted. The Los Angeles Unified School District has begun altering graduation plans in response to the ongoing unrest.

David French, an opinion columnist for the New York Times said on a podcast recorded June 9 that Trump regretted not deploying more troops into American cities and regretted not having national guardsmen under his command during the George Floyd protests of 2020.  “You’ve long had a sense of the administration spoiling for a fight, and when I say a fight, I don’t mean a political fight, I mean a literal fight. In the streets” he said.

French stressed that “Violent protest is utterly unacceptable, it has to stop…but California has immense resources. This is not out of California’s control. And California didn’t ask for or want any federal intervention. But almost as soon as it kicked off, you saw this rhetoric, this explosion of language, across the online space….The rhetoric is maximal rhetoric. The deployment is relatively minimal, but I’m worried it’s only a matter of time before the deployment matches the rhetoric.”

He continued:

I think this is an important test for civil society right now. I think that whenever you see a moment like this, there is a tendency for people who are partisan red or partisan blue to rationalize excesses that they see that are on their 'side.' And in doing so, they provide an enormous amount of fuel for people on the other side. Here’s what I mean: For example, we had an incident where it looked as if out of the clear blue, a police officer just turned and intentionally shot a journalist from Australia with a rubber bullet while she was covering the protests. Unless there’s some context that we’re missing from that — which it’s hard to imagine what that could be — that’s just completely excessive force.

“At the same time, there is not a reason to be burning cars," he added. "There’s not a reason to be throwing rocks at police officers…Civil society has to rise up right now and say political violence is unacceptable. If that political violence is coming from protesters, unacceptable. If political violence is coming through excessive force in response to protests, in sweeping excessive grabs of authority in response to protest, then that is unacceptable. Now, at the same time, we can’t conflate all protests — there is such a thing as civil disobedience that does violate the law. But it’s peaceful, and there is an honorable long tradition of civil disobedience in this country. I respect civil disobedience greatly. People who engage in civil disobedience are extraordinarily courageous. I do not respect the use of violence, and I think that has to be a line that has to apply across the board, and that’s where civil society has to rise up and say: No, we’re not going to choose between violent rioters and excessive use of force. We’re going to demand application of the law, and we’re going to demand peace and peaceful responses.”

How did this all start?

On June 6, federal immigration officers made arrests in the Fashion District near downtown Los Angeles at the Ambiance Apparel clothing manufacturer, after finding “fictitious employee documents.” They also arrested over 40 immigrants in raids targeting day laborers at a Home Depot parking lot in the City of Paramount. On June 7, the Department of Homeland Security posted on X that “ICE operations in LA this week resulted in 118 alien arrests, including five gang members and numerous criminal aliens.”

When did the Los Angeles demonstrations begin, and are they still ongoing?

The demonstrations began on Friday, June 6, and have continued through the next week.

Where are the protests taking place in Southern California?

In downtown Los Angeles, protesters have been gathering at the 300 North Los Angeles Street Federal Building, located across the street from the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and United States Courthouse. The building houses offices for several federal agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the Internal Revenue Service. Demonstrators have also gathered outside the Metropolitan Defense Center, which is located right near the Federal Building.

They have protested in the town of Paramount, just south of Los Angeles..

Protesters shut down the Southbound 101 Freeway and blocked traffic in both directions on June 8.

Have all of the demonstrations been peaceful?

No.

Arrests have been made for attempted murder with a Molotov cocktail, assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer, looting, and failure to disperse.

The LAPD Central Division posted on X that “officers are reporting that people in the crowd are throwing concrete, bottles, and other objects.”

Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said at a press conference on June 8 that a motorcyclist was arrested for ramming a police skirmish line. He said, “protesters on an overpass tossed rocks, scooters and other items at police cars parked on the 101 Freeway and attempted to start cruisers on fire.” Police said several individuals were shooting “commercial grade fireworks” at officers.  “They’ll take a backpack, and the backpack will have a cinderblock in it. They’ll break up the cinderblock and use that, pass it around to throw at officers, to throw at cars and other people,” he said.  “That can kill you,” Chief McDonnell said.

The Washington Post reports that “protesters hurled rocks at police cruisers, tear gas filled the air, and phones captured videos of rioters torching self-driving vehicles, leading one robotaxi company to suspend part of its Los Angeles services.”

The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that officers shot Ryanne Mena, a crime reporter with the LA Daily News, and freelance reporter Sean Beckner-Carmitchel with pepper balls and tear-gassed them on June 6 and June 7 while they reported.  Nick Stern, a British freelance photojournalist based in LA, had emergency surgery after a three-inch plastic bullet struck his leg on June 8. Stern told the BBC that he was wearing a press card around his neck and carrying his camera when he was shot. Officers shot Lauren Tomasi, a reporter for Australia’s 9News, in the leg with a rubber bullet as she reported on air June 8. 

In Santa Ana, Calif., about 30 miles southeast of Los Angeles, federal agents used tear gas, pepper balls, and rubber bullets against protesters who threw bottles and rocks, officials said. 

The Santa Ana Police Department said on Instagram that “U.S. Attorney Bill A. Essayli personally contacted our City to request assistance because federal agents were being overrun at the federal building.” “The situation has escalated, and what began as a lawful assembly around the Civic Center Plaza has escalated into objects being thrown towards officers and other members of the public, posing a risk to public safety, property, and the well-being of our community.”

“Death to ICE” was spray-painted on a green dumpster in a photo shared by @icegov on June 7. They also posted a photo “littered with objects that had been hurled at federal law enforcement.”

What about the peaceful protests?

The protests started out peacefully and there have continued to be peaceful, prayerful gatherings in downtown Los Angeles.

On June 10, Father Greg Boyle and other interfaith leaders stressed the need for peaceful protest. Boyle, a mystic and a Jesuit priest, is the founder of the largest gang intervention, rehabilitation and prison reentry program in the world.

An NBC reporter observed more than 1,000 people spread across Gloria Molina Park “gathered in a closing prayer.” “These people are really listening. More and more people are coming here. We see the signs asking for change. Everything is done in a respectful way. People have come from different parts of LA that do want to make change in a positive way,” he said.

Have law enforcement officers been injured?

Yes. 

As of June 10, five LAPD officers were injured and six CHP officers were injured. Five horses that were used during crowd control were targeted and sustained minor injuries, LAPD said.

On June 7, in a video obtained by Eyewitness News, you can see deputies sitting in restaurant booths as workers help to flush their eyes of tear gas.

How many people have been arrested?

On June 7, according to police, 11 arrests were made outside the federal building in downtown Los Angeles.

On June 9, the LAPD reported more than 100 arrests had been made downtown Los Angeles, including arrests for looting.

The New York Times reported on June 10 that 160 people in Los Angeles had been arrested.

The most high-profile arrest was that of David Huerta, a California union leader, who was arrested in Los Angeles on June 6. @seiu announced that Huerta was released after three days, but he still faces a felony charge of conspiracy to impede an officer, a crime carrying a maximum penalty of up to six years in federal prison.

What kinds of crowd control tactics have been used by the police?

On June 9, the New York Times reported that law enforcement officers in downtown Los Angeles used flash bangs, foam rounds, and other methods to remove protesters from a group of federal buildings. Tear gas was deployed at the corner of Temple Street and Los Angeles Street in downtown Los Angeles. Demonstrators who had climbed onto a ledge to document the scene were thrown to the ground by multiple officers.

In Orange County, officers said they deployed tear gas, pepper balls, and rubber bullets. 

Were businesses damaged or looted?

Yes. The Apple and Adidas stores were among the businesses looted and damaged in downtown Los Angeles.

On the night of June 9, video showed rioters in black hoodies and masks entering and looting the Apple store. One person reportedly broke a window to escape. Fox News published a photo of fireworks blasting through the streets as looters targeted the Apple store on June 9.

What is ICE?

ICE stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

What is the Insurrection Act, and why is President Trump saying he is open to invoking it?

Trump claims “violent, insurrectionist mobs” were destroying Los Angeles and says that without federal intervention, the city would be “burning to the ground.”

He stated: “If I didn’t send in the troops to Los Angeles the last three nights, that once beautiful and great City would be burning to the ground right now, much like 25,000 houses burned to the ground in LA due to an incompetent Governor and Mayor.”

Pete Hegseth testified that ICE has the right to safely conduct operations nationwide, citing an influx of undocumented immigrants under the previous administration.

While speaking to troops at Fort Bragg, N.C., on June 10, Trump called Los Angeles “a trash heap” and promised to “liberate” the city. "These are animals, but they proudly carry the flags of other countries. They don't carry the American flag. They only burn it. Did you see a lot of the flags being burned?" Trump asked.

Has there been partisan or biased media coverage?

Fox News refers to the protests as “Anti-ICE riots” and to demonstrators as “ICE Protesters.”

The Guardian reported that President Trump is sending thousands more troops to California in an “authoritarian” move.

Were any government offices damaged?

Yes. Fox News ran this video of windows being smashed at LAPD Headquarters.

Have the US Marines been mobilized?

Yes. On June 9, President Trump ordered 700 Marines to deploy to the City of Los Angeles and they started moving out that afternoon.

The Washington Post reported that the Marines were “summoned from an infantry unit typically trained for overseas warfare,” and that they had been “stationed east of Los Angeles in Twentynine Palms.” The Los Angeles Times posted a video of the military convoy on YouTube.

Northern Command said the forces will all be under Task Force 51, commanded by Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, deputy commander of U.S. Army North.

On June 10, the head of the Marine Corps confirmed that the battalion had arrived in Los Angeles and was ready to respond. 

The Marines are in Los Angeles to protect federal officials and property, the Marine Corps commandant Gen. Eric Smith said on June 10 when testifying before Congress.

Smith testified that Marines “do not have arrest authority” and “are there to protect federal property and federal personnel.”  

Under the Posse Comitatus Act, U.S. service members are barred from policing citizens on American soil.

Did the President mobilize the National Guard?

Yes. 4,000 National Guard troops have been deployed. The evening of June 7, President Trump ordered 2,000 troops, and on June 9, President Trump ordered an additional 2,000 National Guard troops.

On June 8, the California National Guard 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) "has deployed approximately 300 soldiers to 3 separate locations in the greater Los Angeles area," the U.S. Northern Command posted on X.

Has the US Military or the National Guard ever been mobilized by a President of the United States before June 2025?

Yes. The Insurrection Act, which dates to 1807, allows the president to call up active-duty military units or federalize the National Guard under specific circumstances.

Sixty years ago, U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized a state's National Guard force without the cooperation of its governor. Johnson called on troops to protect civil rights advocates who were marching from Selma, Ala., to Montgomery.

After the April 4, 1968, assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., then-President Johnson deployed 13,000 federal troops, including active duty Army and Marine units, to guard the Capitol and the city streets, starting on April 5, 1968. King’s assassination sparked widespread riots in Washington, D.C. Fires destroyed buildings while crowds looted storefronts for food, appliances, and other goods. The Pentagon withdrew the last of the troops on April 16.

On May 1, 1992, then-President George H.W. Bush invoked the Insurrection Act, deploying 4,000 U.S. Army soldiers and 1,500 Marines to Los Angeles during the Rodney King riots. Bush also mobilized 1,000 federal troops trained in urban policing. More than 4,000 National Guard members had already been in place by the time federal troops arrived in Los Angeles three days later. The National Guard’s deployment came at the request of California’s then-Gov. Pete Wilson and Mayor Tom Bradley.  President Bush addressed the nation from the Oval Office, saying, “What we saw last night and the night before in Los Angeles is not about civil rights. It's not about the great cause of equality that all Americans must uphold. It's not a message of protest. It's been the brutality of a mob, pure and simple. And let me assure you: I will use whatever force is necessary to restore order. What is going on in L.A. must and will stop. As your President I guarantee you this violence will end.”

How will prosecutors go about finding the violent protesters?

Prosecutors are using social media to identify violent protesters.

What is the status of the State of California’s lawsuit against President Trump?

On June 9, California filed a lawsuit challenging the “unlawful” deployment of 4,000 National Guard troops, claiming the move trampled on state sovereignty, exceeded presidential authority, and violated the U.S. Constitution.

On June 10, Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta filed for a temporary restraining order to block the Secretary of Defense from using military forces to accompany ICE on immigration raids in Los Angeles.

They asked the court to issue a ruling by 1 p.m. PST, and the federal judge in California set a hearing for June 12 on the state’s request to restrict the federal government’s use of Marines and National Guard troops in the Los Angeles area, limiting them only to protecting federal property.

Upon the filing of the restraining order, Bonta said: “The President is looking for any pretense to place military forces on American streets to intimidate and quiet those who disagree with him.”

Newsom said, “The federal government is now turning the military against American citizens. Sending trained warfighters onto the streets is unprecedented and threatens the very core of our democracy.”

What will be the cost to the Department of Defense for deploying soldiers to Los Angeles?

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth answered questions about the cost of sending Marines to Los Angeles at a hearing on June 10. Hegseth turned to his acting comptroller, Bryn Woollacott MacDonnell, who said it would cost $134 million.

The AP reported that the discussion about troop deployment at the hearing “triggered several fiery exchanges that at times devolved into shouting matches as House committee members and Hegseth yelled over one another.”

What are the Democrats saying?

California Governor Gavin Newsom said, “The federal government is now turning the military against American citizens. Sending trained warfighters onto the streets is unprecedented and threatens the very core of our democracy”, and “Donald Trump is behaving like a tyrant, not a President. We ask the court to immediately block these unlawful actions.”

The governor claimed that an overwhelming majority of those activated so far are “sitting, unused, in federal buildings without orders,” and that Trump’s moves had been “Reckless. Pointless. And Disrespectful to our troops.” 

“The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor. This is a day I hoped I would never see in America. I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican, this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism,” Newsom said June 9 on the social platform X.

“Your tenure as secretary has been marked by endless chaos,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., told Hegseth on June 10 at a congressional hearing.

On June 10, LA Mayor Karen Bass said that there was “nothing going on here that warranted the federal intervention.”

“The President is looking for any pretense to place military forces on American streets to intimidate and quite those who disagree with him,” California Attorney General Bonta said. “It’s not just immoral – It’s illegal and dangerous.”

“The idea that an apolitical military, which we all should cherish and value, are now going to be thrown into a situation that they’re scrambling to participate in, where the LAPD says, ‘We don’t need them,’ to create a dramatic story — I’m worried about what that will say about the US military,” Senator Elissa Slotkin said at the June 10 hearing with Pete Hegseth.

Mayor Bass said that it was not Trump that helped quell the protests, it was local law enforcement: “We know 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 was tweeting that out.” She was referring to Trump taking credit online for the national guard calming down protests, thanking them on Saturday night before the national guard actually arrived on Sunday. Gavin Newsom also pointed this out at the time

“This is unprecedented that the president is using the military against his own people in this way,” said Los Angeles City Council member Hugo Soto-Martínez.

California’s Lieutenant Governor said the problems are “generated by Donald Trump.”

What are the Republicans saying?

Trump said on his social media site, Truth Social, that he had directed the homeland security and defense secretaries and Attorney General Pam Bondi “to take all such action necessary to liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion, and put an end to these Migrant riots.”

On June 9, President Trump said he would support arresting Governor Newsom. 

“If I didn’t send in the troops to Los Angeles the last three nights, that once beautiful and great City would be burning to the ground right now, much. Like 25,000 houses burned to the ground in LA do (sic) to an incompetent Governor and Mayor,” Trump posted.

Vice President JD Vance demanded that Newsom do his job. “If you want to know why illegal aliens flocked to your state, stop accusing Donald Trump. Look in the mirror.  If you want to know why border patrol fear for their lives over enforcing the law, look in the mirror.  It was your policies that encouraged mass migration into California. Your policies that protected those migrants from common sense law enforcement. Your policies that offered massive welfare benefits to reward illegal immigrants. Your policies that allowed those illegal migrants (and their sympathizers) to assault our law enforcement. Your policies that allowed Los Angeles to turn into a war zone. You sure as hell had a problem before President Trump came along. The problem is YOU,” Vance posted on X.

Pete Hegseth defended ICE operations and the federal deployment during testimony before Congress. “In Los Angeles, we believe that ICE, which is a federal law enforcement agency, has the right to safely conduct operations in any state, in any jurisdiction in the country, especially after 21 million illegals have crossed our border under the previous administration ICE ought to be able to do its job, whether it’s Minneapolis or Los Angeles.”

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said Newsom “ought to be tarred and feathered.” 

Sean Parnell, a spokesman for and top adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, said on X that the additional service members would enable Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel to “safely conduct their duties.”