In June 2025, Los Angeles became the epicenter of a fierce clash between law enforcement and protesters in the wake of sweeping immigration raids ordered by the Trump administration. What began as largely peaceful demonstrations against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations escalated into scenes of chaos and violence, with Human Rights Watch and numerous eyewitnesses documenting a pattern of excessive force and deliberate brutality by local, state, and federal officers. The fallout has left scores injured, journalists targeted, and the city facing a reckoning over civil rights and police accountability.
According to Human Rights Watch, the protests erupted on June 6, 2025, after ICE agents—acting on new directives to ramp up arrests of undocumented immigrants—stormed a variety of workplaces across Los Angeles. These included stores, hotels, restaurants, and even taco stands, with heavily armed agents detaining those suspected of lacking legal status. The raids sent shockwaves through the city’s predominantly Latino communities, driving thousands into the streets in protest.
From June 6 to June 14, protesters gathered daily outside the Metropolitan Detention Center and other government buildings in downtown Los Angeles. The demonstrations, though largely non-violent, were at times marked by confusion and tension. Law enforcement’s response, however, was swift and severe. Officers from multiple agencies—including the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), California Highway Patrol (CHP), and federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—deployed a range of so-called "less lethal" weapons: tear gas, pepper balls, hard foam rounds, and flash-bang grenades, often fired directly at protesters, journalists, and observers at close range and, in many cases, without warning.
The scale of the injuries was staggering. Human Rights Watch documented 65 cases of individuals harmed by law enforcement, with the actual number likely much higher. Reported injuries included severe bruising, lacerations, broken bones, concussions, an amputated finger, and permanent eye damage. One particularly harrowing account involved a police officer shooting three police accountability advocates at close range with kinetic impact projectiles, leaving each in serious pain for days. Before shooting one of the advocates in the groin, the officer reportedly said, "I'm going to pop you, as you are taking up my focus." (Human Rights Watch)
Journalists, too, found themselves in the crosshairs. On June 8, Australian journalist Lauren Tomasi was shot in the leg with a kinetic impact projectile while reporting live from downtown Los Angeles. British photojournalist Nick Stern required surgery to remove a three-inch canister from his leg after being hit by a flash-bang device in Paramount. Los Angeles Daily News reporter Ryanne Mena was struck twice by projectiles—once in the leg and once in the head—resulting in a concussion. Filmmaker Marshall Woodruff, documenting police conduct, was hit in the face and arm by police projectiles, suffering a facial fracture and severe eye damage that left him blind in one eye two months later. Human Rights Watch found that 39 journalists were injured, many appearing to have been deliberately targeted despite displaying press credentials.
Volunteer medics described scenes reminiscent of a war zone. Christopher Fernandez, an intensive care nurse, recounted treating 20 to 30 people in a single afternoon, including five with head injuries and a pregnant woman. Fernandez himself was shot in the thigh with a hard foam projectile, resulting in a gaping wound that sidelined him from work for weeks. "The chaos. The volume of everything. I was just going from people screaming, 'Medic, medic!,' one after another, for hours… People were bleeding from the head or the face, and they needed someone to look at them to tell them if they should go to the hospital. I have never experienced anything like this," Fernandez told Human Rights Watch.
The response from law enforcement was not limited to the use of projectiles. Officers on horseback were documented ramming protesters, sometimes with their backs turned, and beating individuals with batons. In several cases, police formed lines to "kettle" protesters—trapping them without a clear avenue to disperse—before detaining dozens, including legal observers wearing identifiable green hats.
Despite California’s legal safeguards, including Penal Code Section 13652 which restricts the use of kinetic energy projectiles and mandates clear warnings before force is used, Human Rights Watch repeatedly observed officers firing into crowds without audible dispersal orders. Many protesters and observers expressed frustration at the lack of direction, with lines of officers pushing crowds back and forth, creating confusion and escalating tensions.
There were isolated incidents of violence and property destruction by protesters, particularly in the early days. On June 8, some threw water bottles and rocks at officers, set off fireworks, and vandalized government buildings. However, Human Rights Watch found that most acts of violence by protesters occurred after law enforcement initiated force, and only a small portion of the crowd engaged in such behavior. Police Chief Jim McDonnell acknowledged that the protests were "most often marked by peaceful expression," but maintained that officers were justified in taking "swift and measured action to prevent further harm and restore public safety."
Federal authorities responded to the unrest with overwhelming force. On June 7, President Trump declared the protests a "form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States," calling in 4,000 National Guard troops and authorizing the deployment of 700 active-duty Marines. Local and state officials objected to the federal intervention, even as local police continued aggressive tactics to disperse the protests.
The legal and civil rights implications are significant. Human Rights Watch concluded that law enforcement’s actions violated international human rights law, the US Constitution’s guarantees of free speech and peaceful assembly, and California’s recently amended statutes protecting protesters and journalists. Lawsuits have been filed against the City and County of Los Angeles and the DHS, echoing past cases that have cost taxpayers millions in settlements but resulted in little accountability or substantive reform.
In the weeks following the protests, over 280 people contacted the ACLU of Southern California to report injuries inflicted by law enforcement. Human Rights Watch wrote to the DHS, LAPD, and LASD seeking responses to their findings, but as of late July, none had replied. Chief McDonnell promised a "comprehensive evaluation of each use-of-force incident" and accountability for any officer "who has fallen short" of departmental standards.
As Los Angeles grapples with the aftermath, the events of June 2025 stand as a stark reminder of the fragile balance between public safety and civil liberties, and the high cost when that balance is lost.
