The Los Angeles Police Department faces growing criticism over its handling of protests as new videos and images emerged Friday of violent, aggressive behavior by officers.
Mayor Eric Garcetti found himself walking a fine line, criticizing episodes of excessive force that have been captured on video while also defending positive contributions that individual officers and law enforcement investigations have made, such as breaking up human trafficking rings. He said some of the police tactics seen in the last week have “no place in the City of Angels.”
A coalition of criminal justice activists and homeless advocates filed a lawsuit against the city over how police have handled protests following the death of George Floyd, accusing officers of shooting a homeless man in the eye with rubber bullets and holding people for upward of 12 hours for simple curfew violations.
The suit — filed late Friday by the Los Angeles chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, Black Lives Matter and Los Angeles Community Action Network — accused the LAPD of violating protesters’ right to assemble and using excessive force.
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A protester dances on top of Donald Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame during a demonstration by members of Refuse Fascism who are calling an end to the Trump administration on June 20, 2020. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Deborah Jay Winams cries after singing a song at a Black Lives Matter Los Angeles rally to call for justice in the fatal shooting of Kenneth Ross Jr. by Gardena police in 2018. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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People participate in the All Black Lives Matter march in West Hollywood on Sunday, June 14. Thousands of demonstrators marched for racial justice and LGBTQ rights. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
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A protester waves a rainbow flag on Sunset Boulevard during the All Black Lives Matter march on Sunday. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
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Thousands hold up signs and march in the All Black Lives Matter solidarity protest on Hollywood Boulevard. The procession started at Hollywood and Highland and moved into West Hollywood. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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Jason De Puy of West Hollywood wears a mask that reads “Black Trans Lives Matter” as people fill Hollywood Boulevard during a solidarity march called All Black Lives Matter on Sunday, June 14. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters hold up signs at the All Black Lives Matter march, which was organized by Black LGBTQ leaders and organizations in place of a previously planned event by the group behind LA Pride. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters march, raising fists and signs in the air, on La Brea Avenue in Hollywood on Sunday. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
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The Compton Cowboys ride horseback down South Tamarind Avenue, joining thousand of protesters Sunday during the Compton peace ride, which ended at City Hall. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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Houston Rockets star Russell Westbrook speaks to the crowd of protesters and the Compton Cowboys at the end of a peace walk at Compton City Hall on Sunday. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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Elijah Estrada, 6, holds up his fist for 8:46, the length of time George Floyd was held down by Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, at the conclusion of a peace ride and walk with the Compton Cowboys at Compton City Hall on Sunday. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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A family member of Breonna Taylor, right, is hugged by another woman after speaking to protesters in Beverly Hills Saturday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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A woman tries to get between Black Lives Matter protesters and pro-Trump counter protesters during a demonstration at the intersection of Main Street and Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach on Saturday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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Los Angeles Police Deputy Chief Regina Scott takes knee next to Johnathan Jasper, brother of slain teen Anthony Weber, during a rally in front of LA City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s office Saturday. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
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A protester yells in front of a Black Lives Matter mural with the names of victims on Fairfax Ave. during a march Saturday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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David Blackgold hugs Huntington Beach police officer K. Wood during a Black Lives Matter protest in Huntington Beach Saturday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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A National Guardsman holds a rose given to him by a protester along Fairfax Ave. during a march Saturday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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A Black Lives Matter protester blows bubbles by a police line in Huntington Beach on Saturday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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A protester lies on the ground under his horse with his hands behind his back as demonstrators including some on horseback rally in front of LA City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s office in Los Angeles Saturday. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
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Tempers flare between Black Lives Matter demonstratiors and pro-Trump counterprotesters in Huntington Beach on Saturday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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Black Lives Matter demonstrators raise clenched fist in Huntington Beach on Saturday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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Mek Bitul held up a sign with the words, “This Is The Tipping Point!!!” in front of City Hall, joining nearly 1,000 people gathered to protest the death of George Floyd and in support of Black Lives Matter, in downtown Los Angeles. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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Katyana DeCampos, a citizen of France visiting California, marched with a sign with the words “Anti Racism,” joining nearly 1,000 people gathered to protest the death of George Floyd and in support of Black Lives Matter, in downtown Los Angeles. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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Zoe Perkins, 4, of Glendale and her mother brought flowers to the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles to protest the death of George Floyd. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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LAPD Chief Michel Moore, left, talks with community leaders outside police headquarters after a candlelight vigil for George Floyd on Friday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)
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A man lays a rose at the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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Braydon Deauce White, 4, fist-bumps a National Guardsman at LAPD headquarters Thursday morning. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
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Allison Bracy of Fontana hugs daughter Brielle Bracy, 10, while attending a rally in Riverside on Thursday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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A protester drapes himself with a flag during a demonstration in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Gustavo R. Ramirez of Pomona kneels in front of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. statue in Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters at Moonlight State Beach in Encinitas. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times)
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Crowds gather in downtown L.A. to protest the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. At 9 p.m., for exactly 8 minutes and 46 seconds, protesters shone lights into the sky. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters dance on Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles as a march attracted thousands of people. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Thousands of protesters gather at the Los Angeles Civic Center. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Thousands of protesters gather at the Los Angeles Civic Center. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)
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Thousands of protesters gather at the Los Angeles Civic Center. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)
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Stephen Chang, 32, left, of Silver Lake, with an American flag draped over his head, joins other demonstrators at the intersection of Spring and Temple streets in downtown Los Angeles, as they protest against L.A. Dist. Atty. Jackie Lacey and also demand justice in the death of George Floyd. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
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Miles Miles, 8, left, and Memphis Miley, 6, center, of Newport Beach, join protest against racism in Newport Beach. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
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Protester Vailing high-fives National Guardsmen as they march through Hollywood to demand justice for the killing of George Floyd in Hollywood. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters march through a residential neighborhood in Hollywood. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters walk through a residential neighborhood in Hollywood. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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A L.A. Sheriff’s deputy watches as protester Annik Chung holds a sign while cheering on marchers along La Brea Ave. in Hollywood. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Mustafa-Ali, 27, from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, joins other demonstrators as they protest on Spring St. in downtown Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
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Paul Villalobos, 28, from Oakland, joins other demonstrators as they protest on Spring St. in downtown Los Angeles. (Mel Melcon/Los Angeles Times)
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A huge crowd gathers in downtown Los Angeles to protest the death of George Floyd and in support of Black Lives Matter. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors march through downtown Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors march through downtown Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors march through downtown Los Angeles. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)
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Riverside County Sheriff Lt Chris Durham tries to calm nerves after hundreds of demonstrators that marched to the police station protest the death of George Floyd in Moreno Valley. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
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In a sign of peace, protesters reach out to Riverside County Sheriff deputies, who were there to enforce an 8pm curfew during a demonstration to protest the death of George Floyd’s in Moreno Valley. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
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Hundreds of demonstrators block traffic as they march down both sides of Balboa Blvd. to protest against racism in Newport Beach. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters march through West Hollywood to demand justice for the killing of George Floyd during march on Wednesday. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters march through West Hollywood to demand justice for the killing of George Floyd during march on Wednesday. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors rally on the steps Anaheim City Hall steps against last week’s in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors rally on the steps Anaheim City Hall steps against last week’s in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors rally on the steps Anaheim City Hall steps against last week’s in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors rally on the steps Anaheim City Hall steps against last week’s in-custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
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Bando Kev prays along Hollywood Blvd. in front of the National Guard and near TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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A couple promote peace on Highland Ave. in Hollywood as protesters continue to demonstrate. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
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Makenzie Anderson, 2, rides on her father, Shawn’s shoulders as they join hundreds of protesters marching throughout downtown. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
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Marcus Owen, yells out chants for George Floyd as hundreds of protesters gather outside City Hall in a daylong protest. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
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Hussain Sharif, left, Mari Drake, and Thomas Rosado chant as they ride along with hundreds of protesters at a downtown demonstration. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
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Hundreds of protesters march throughout downtown ending with many arrested for curfew violations. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
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“Hands up. Don’t shoot,” say hundreds participating in a march against the of George Floyd on Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice onTuesday. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
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Members of the California National Guard flash peace signs after protesters had marched by in support of Black Lives Matter in Venice. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters shoot hoops while taking a break from marching against the death of George Floyd by police on Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice on Tuesday. The basketball hoop was attached to the front of a bus that followed the protest for a while. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
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Several hundred protesters take a knee and hold their fists in the air during a moment of silence to honor George Floyd during a peaceful protest march from Manhattan Beach to Hermosa Beach. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
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A woman stands next to an image of George Floyd as hundreds participate in a march against the in-custody death of Floyd in Venice. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)
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Terrence Burney, 36, left, and Commander of the LAPD Operation West Bureau Cory Palka, right, talk together peacefully in front of Getty House in Hancock Park. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
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Protestors gather outside Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Hancock Park house as they continue to demonstrate against police brutality. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
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Jessica Jordan takes a knee as she joins other protesters at Sunset & Vine in Hollywood on Tuesday. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
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A young woman reacts to a group chant, while gathered with a couple hundred people to protest the death of George Floyd and in support of Black Lives Matter, near the Manhattan Beach Pier. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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Jayse Garcia, 27, of Los Angeles takes part in a demonstration in Hollywood. (Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
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Protesters sit in front of National Guardsmen closing Sunset Blvd at Vine Street in Hollywood. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
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Mira Ercingoz,16, from Palos Verdes, center in red hat, holds a poster with an image of George Floyd alongside protesters in Manhattan Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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Demonstrators take a knee during protests in Hollywood on Tuesday.
(Francine Orr/Los Angeles Times)
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A mother and daughter pass protestors in Hollywood. (Al Seib/Los Angeles Times)
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Several hundred protesters gather to demand justice for George Floyd at the Manhattan Beach Pier Plaza Tuesday. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
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Janie Hill,15, from Lawndale, receives a hug from a friend, following an emotional discussion with a Manhattan Beach Police officer, at the conclusion of a protest in Manhattan Beach. (Jay L. Clendenin/Los Angeles Times)
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LAPD Cmdr. Gerald Woodyard takes a knee with clergy members from the Los Angeles area as they participate in a march and demonstration outside LAPD headquarters in Los Angeles. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
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L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti walks out to address protesters and clergy members outside LAPD headquarters on Tuesday. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times)
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Several hundred protesters take a knee and hold their fists in the air during a moment of silence to honor George Floyd during a peaceful protest march from Manhattan Beach to Hermosa Beach. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The complaint also provided new information about an image of a homeless man bleeding from the eye in downtown Los Angeles that had gone viral and been shared by many critical of the department over the past week.
The LAPD has not completed a breakdown of arrests during the protests. Department spokesman Josh Rubenstein estimated that about 2,700 people were arrested between May 29 and Tuesday during the height of the protests; booking records suggest the majority of those arrests were for failure to obey a dispersal order or curfew violations.
The department has not provided updated arrest figures since Tuesday. The lawsuit estimated 3% of the 2,700 arrests were for looting or other crimes. Booking records reviewed by The Times earlier this week showed about 150 people had been arrested for looting during that time, approximately 5% of the overall arrest total.
“Over the past week, while [Black Lives Matter Los Angeles] and its members were engaged in lawful First Amendment activity, the LAPD used force to terminate the protests, including the indiscriminate use of so-called less lethal weapons that caused injury to its members and instilled fear in them that, if they chose to assemble in public spaces to express their opposition to police violence across the nation against black men and women, they would be the subject of such violence and arrest,” the suit said.
The suit also accused the LAPD of arresting a number of homeless people for curfew violations even though they “had no place they could go to avoid violating.”
The suit contained a gruesome picture of a homeless man in a wheelchair known as “Cincinnati” bleeding from the eye, allegedly after police shot him in the face with rubber bullets. The LAPD has said it uses less-than-lethal foam projectiles, not rubber bullets.
“He pleaded with police not to use force on him before being shot in the face,” the suit claims.
Rubenstein confirmed the incident involving the homeless man is the subject of an Internal Affairs investigation, as are several other widely circulated clips of alleged police misconduct that have surfaced in recent days. He urged anyone who believes they were the victim of police misconduct to contact Internal Affairs or the Office of the Inspector General, but declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Earlier this week, LAPD Chief Michel Moore said the department needed to show more force in response to attacks on police officers and reports of looting in various parts of the city. At least 27 officers have been injured in the last week while responding to protests or looting, including one officer who was hospitalized with a fractured skull.
But in recent days, the LAPD has been criticized for its response to the demonstrations. Two City Council members and the president of the civilian Police Commission, former federal prosecutor Eileen Decker, have called for a review.
On Friday, Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) also called on the Police Commission to investigate the department’s response last week to protests and looting in the Fairfax District.
While the area saw significant looting and police cars being set on fire, footage has also emerged showing officers striking unarmed protesters with batons. A reporter for L.A. Taco said he was attacked with a baton without provocation, despite declaring himself a member of the press.
“Folks who loot or commit arson or assault police officers are committing crimes and that cannot be condoned or tolerated. At the same time, you can’t attribute what some folks did on one day, and then deal with peaceful protesters on a different day and hit them with batons,” Lieu said Friday. “They are a different set of people, so it’s not a justification to say just because some people did some looting, therefore we’re going to treat all protesters the same.”
Asked about the use of batons or foam rounds to break up demonstrations, Moore said officers could be justified in using such force if an unlawful assembly is declared because of violence, attacks on officers or destruction of property. But he said the key was the proportionality of force used and acknowledged at least one incident from last weekend required his involvement to stop officers from being violent.
“Officers were taking rocks, bottles, other projectiles [and] sustaining injuries from members within a very large crowd. And that crowd, it was the determination of on-scene commanders that it was an unlawful assembly, and that that crowd needed to disperse,” he said. “And what I witnessed was officers resorting to force, including baton strikes to achieve that, and I went personally to the scene and took actions to stop that.”
Still, consequences from the department’s actions last weekend continued to surface. Brooke Fortson, 29, who said she was peacefully protesting when an LAPD cruiser slammed into her in Pershing Square on Sunday, has filed notice that she plans to sue the city.
Television footage showed an LAPD vehicle driving toward a crowd of protesters near 5th and Hill streets Sunday afternoon. After briefly stopping as protesters tried to get around the car, the car speeds forward, striking at least one person.
Fortson told The Times she suffered bruises across her body after the car struck her in the side. The LAPD has said protesters were attacking the vehicle, which was responding to a report of a robbery, but television footage does not appear to show that. Fortson also denied that claim.
“My experience of what happened was, after I was hit, I jumped away and I remember hands pulling me toward the curb and asking me if I was OK. I remember hearing someone yell this is a peaceful protest, everybody kneel, and everybody on the steps kneeled down,” she said. “Largely, the vast majority of people stayed and remained peaceful and deescalated the situation that the cop caused.”
Meanwhile, dozens of protests continued across Southern California.
A Friday afternoon demonstration at Santa Monica City Hall turned into a raucous Q&A between peaceful protesters and the city police chief, interim city manager and mayor.
Mayor Kevin McKeown and interim City Manager Lane Dilg attempted to address protesters and were met with questions about the use of tear gas last Sunday in Santa Monica and calls to cut the city’s police budget.
“We will look at the actions of Sunday; we will determine what we can do to keep our community safe and facilitate peaceful protest,” Dilg said.
“You called in the National Guard!” one protester shouted.
Police Chief Cynthia Renaud said the list of names of people who died at the hands of police doesn’t seem to end, but they stop in Santa Monica.
“I believe in the peace; I believe in the community I serve,” she said.
Then she, the mayor and others took a knee in solidarity with the protesters. Some in the crowd decried the moment as a photo op. One protester said if Renaud couldn’t admit that violence was used against nonviolent protesters then she should resign.
Times staff writers Alex Wigglesworth, Tony Barboza, Joseph Serna and Leila Miller contributed to this report.
