LA Police Deploy Tear Gas on Crowds During Trump Protest in Los Angeles

The Los Angeles police forcefully dispersed the tail-end crowds at a peaceful anti-Trump protest downtown on Saturday. Police officers on horseback used batons and wooden sticks to clear an area around a federal building, while firing tear canisters and foam rubber bullets when some demonstrators tried to regroup. Hours after the main protest had concluded and most participants had left, a small group gathered outside a federal office building, away from the designated protest zone, and began chanting at a line of U.S. Marines. The standoff intensified as the marines stepped forward with riot shields to prevent protesters from climbing the entrance steps. The police issued a dispersal order, which some in the crowd may not have heard, stating it was an “unlawful assembly”. The horses arrived around 4 p.m., and teargas was used shortly after. While the earlier protest was joyful and peaceful, the tail end quickly became confrontational, a contrast to earlier moments when demonstrators shook hands with National Guard troops outside a federal courthouse. The confrontations continued for at least an hour, spilling over to City Hall, where the earlier rally and march had taken place. Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell earlier stated that his officers would safeguard people’s right to protest peacefully but would make arrests if laws were broken. Mayor Karen Bass had implemented curfews after previous instances of vandalism and violence during peaceful protests. Bass had urged protesters to remain peaceful and not give the administration an excuse to intervene. Officials have not commented on the late afternoon trouble or provided arrest numbers, while the LA Times reported that some protesters were injured and that some scaled a fence to escape police officers.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/14/los-angeles-trump-protest