A curfew will go into effect in parts of downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday after federal immigration raids sparked five straight days of riots, looting, violent clashes with police, and more than 150 arrests, Mayor Karen Bass announced.
“We reached a tipping point,” Bass said at a news conference, declaring a local emergency after 23 businesses were vandalized Monday night.
The curfew will run from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Wednesday within a 1-square-mile section of downtown from the 5 Freeway to the 110 Freeway and the 10 Freeway to the junction where it meets the 110 and 5 freeways – areas where thousands of protesters have raged since Friday.
The emergency order – which could potentially remain in effect for several more days – doesn’t apply to downtown residents, local workers, and the homeless.
“If you do not live or work in downtown LA, stay away,” Bass warned.
The city has been in turmoil since protests-turned-riots erupted as US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided numerous workplaces and hauled off suspected illegal immigrants.
Some of the demonstrations quickly turned violent, with busy highways blocked, large rocks being hurled at police cars and city streets being left littered with burning cars by day and looters ransacking storefronts by night.
Tension escalated into a hotbed of unrest when President Trump bypassed California Governor Gavin Newsom and ordered thousands of National Guard troops into the city to restore order – likening the situation to the 2020 anti-police riots that broke out after the murder of George Floyd by convicted Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin.
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said “unlawful and dangerous behavior” has only intensified since Saturday — resulting in 27 arrests Saturday, 40 on Sunday, and 114 on Monday, according to the Los Angeles Times.
“The curfew is a necessary measure to protect lives and safeguard property following several consecutive days of growing unrest throughout the city,” McDonnell said.
The mayhem has become so volatile that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered 700 Marines to Los Angeles to back up the National Guard troops on the ground and local authorities.
The federal troops are largely being used to protect federal buildings and assist ICE officers.
The heavy military presence hasn’t discouraged protestors from raging on, with about 600 protesters unsuccessfully trying to seize Freeway 101 near the Citizenship and Immigration Services building during a standoff with police Tuesday afternoon.
Traffic was halted briefly before authorities directed the demonstrators off the freeway.
A parade of peaceful marchers has since flooded the downtown area, with motorists seemingly welcoming the traffic delay to observe the unfolding events – which ended in another standstill as police fired less-lethal rounds to disperse the crowd.
With Post wires
