National Guard deployed in Los Angeles amid protests against immigration raids

LOS ANGELES - The California National Guard arrived in Los Angeles on June 8, deployed by US President Donald Trump after two days of protests by hundreds of demonstrators against immigration raids carried out as part of Mr Trump’s strict policy.

About a dozen National Guard members were seen in video footage on the morning of June 8 lining up at a federal building in downtown Los Angeles, where detainees from immigration raids on June 6 were taken, sparking protests that continued on June 7.

The complex is near Los Angeles City Hall, where another protest against the immigration raids is scheduled for the afternoon of June 8. US Northern Command confirmed National Guard troops had started deploying and that some were already on the ground.

National Guard troops were also seen in Paramount in south-east Los Angeles near Home Depot, the site of altercations between protesters and police on June 7.

A planned demonstration in the eastern Los Angeles neighbourhood of Boyle Heights drew about 200 protesters by 12pm local time on June 8. No law enforcement personnel were present, according to a Reuters witness.

“These Radical Left protests, by instigators and often paid troublemakers, will NOT BE TOLERATED,” Mr Trump posted on his Truth Social platform early on June 8.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has accused Mr Trump of deploying the National Guard because he wants “a spectacle”.

Video showed at least a half dozen military-style vehicles and riot shields on June 8 at the federal building, where the Department of Homeland Security said about “1,000 rioters” had protested on June 6. Reuters could not verify the DHS account.

Law enforcement faced off with protesters in Paramount and downtown Los Angeles, with federal officers firing gas canisters in efforts to disperse crowds, according to Reuters witnesses. In Paramount, a few hundred protesters gathered before tensions escalated on June 7, with approximately 100 demonstrators assembled in downtown Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles Police Department arrested 27 people on June 7 for failure to disperse from the downtown protest, police spokeswoman Norma Eisenman said. She said she could not comment on whether LAPD used less lethal force. Less lethal force refers to crowd control tactics such as pepper balls.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department arrested three people on June 7 on suspicion of assaulting an officer. Sheriff’s deputies did use “less lethal force” in Paramount, spokeswoman Deputy Brenda Serna said, but she could not specify which exact tactics were used.

‘Zero tolerance’

The protests pit Democratic-run Los Angeles, where census data suggests a significant part of the population is Hispanic and foreign-born, against Mr Trump’s Republican White House, which has made an immigration crackdown a hallmark of his second term.

Mr Trump in a presidential memorandum on June 7 said he was deploying at least 2,000 National Guard personnel, following what he described as “numerous incidents of violence and disorder” in response to the enforcement of federal immigration law, as well as “credible threats of continued violence”.

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has also warned that the Pentagon was prepared to mobilise active-duty troops “if violence continues” in Los Angeles, saying the Marines at nearby Camp Pendleton were “on high alert”.

“There is plenty of room for peaceful protest, but ZERO tolerance for attacking federal agents who are doing their job. The National Guard, and Marines if need be, stand with ICE,” Mr Hegseth said in a social media post on June 8, referring to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Democratic Congresswoman Nanette Barragan, whose California district includes Paramount, on June 8 criticised the President’s decision to deploy National Guard troops, arguing that local law enforcement has adequate resources to respond.

“We don’t need the help. This is him escalating it, causing tensions to rise. It’s only going to make things worse in a situation where people are already angry over immigration enforcement,” Ms Barragan told CNN’s State of the Union.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told CBS’ Face The Nation on June 8 that the National Guard would provide safety around buildings, to people engaged in peaceful protest and to law enforcement.

ICE operations in Los Angeles on June 6 arrested at least 44 people on alleged immigration violations.

Mr Trump has pledged to

deport record numbers of people

in the country illegally and lock down the US-Mexico border, setting a goal for ICE to arrest at least 3,000 migrants a day.

But the sweeping immigration crackdown has also included people legally residing in the country, some with permanent residence, and has led to legal challenges.

Trump’s justification

While US Vice-President J.D. Vance referred to the protesters on June 7 as “insurrectionists” and senior White House aide Stephen Miller described the protests as a “violent insurrection”, Mr Trump has not invoked the Insurrection Act.

That 1807 law empowers a president to deploy the US military to enforce the law and suppress events like civil disorder. The last time it was invoked was during the 1992 Los Angeles riots at the request of the California governor.

Instead, Mr Trump’s justification for the National Guard deployment cited a provision of Title 10 of the US Code on the Armed Forces. However, Title 10 also says the “orders for these purposes shall be issued through the governors of the states”. It was not immediately clear if the President had the legal authority to deploy the National Guard troops without Mr Newsom’s order.

Title 10 allows for National Guard deployment by the federal government if there is “a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States”. Those troops are allowed to engage only in limited activities and cannot undertake ordinary law enforcement activities.

Mr Trump’s memo says the troops will “temporarily protect ICE and other United States government personnel who are performing Federal functions, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property, at locations where protests against these functions are occurring or are likely to occur”. REUTERS