An Australian reporter was shot by a rubber bullet live on air while covering the protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles over the weekend
9 News Australia’s U.S. correspondent, Lauren Tomasi, screamed after being shot, before insisting on camera, “I’m good”
Dozens of arrests have been made in the city over the weekend as protests escalated
An Australian reporter was shot by a rubber bullet live on air while covering the protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Los Angeles over the weekend.
On Sunday, June 8, 9 News Australia shared a video on X showing their U.S. correspondent, Lauren Tomasi, being “caught in the crossfire as the LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) fired rubber bullets at protesters in the heart” of the city.
Telling the camera the situation had “rapidly deteriorated,” Tomasi added, “The LAPD moving in on horseback, firing rubber bullets at protesters, moving them on through the heart of L.A.”
Tomasi was then shot in the leg, as she screamed, before insisting, “I’m good.”
Multiple people were arrested in L.A. over the weekend amid the escalating protests, which began on Friday, June 6, after dozens were detained by federal immigration agents across several locations, CNN reported.
At least 118 arrests were made in the city over the past week as a result of the ICE operations, the BBC reported, adding that 44 arrests had been made on Friday.
On Sunday, tensions rose as President Donald Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops to the area.
Amid the protests against the raids, at least 56 people were arrested over the weekend, per NBC News, citing police, with Captain Raul Jovel from the Los Angeles Police Department’s (LAPD) Central Division stating that the California Highway Patrol had made 17 arrests while patrolling the 101 Freeway.
Those arrested included an unnamed person accused of ramming a motorcycle into police officers, injuring one, and another who allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail at an officer, the outlet added.
The LAPD didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.
Over the weekend, tear gas had been used to disperse crowds as residents of the predominantly Latino Paramount district clashed with ICE agents, reported the BBC.
The arrests came as Trump authorized the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops amid the protests. The first of the guards arrived in the city on Sunday morning, the outlet reported.
In a separate article, the outlet noted that it was the first time the National Guard had been activated without the request of a state’s governor since 1965.
California Governor Gavin Newsom was among the officials to condemn Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard, writing on Facebook on Sunday, “Trump is trying to manufacture a crisis in L.A. County — deploying troops not for order, but to create chaos,” adding, “Never use violence or harm law enforcement.”
Newsom later wrote, “Despite protests already being managed by LAPD Headquarters, President Trump is escalating the situation by threatening to deploy roughly 500 active-duty Marines to the streets of Los Angeles,” urging the people of L.A. to “remain peaceful.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told KTLA on Sunday morning of Trump’s decision to deploy the troops, “I’m very disappointed that [Trump] chose to [deploy the National Guard] because it was just not necessary.”
She insisted that some protesters had “committed acts of vandalism,” but noted that it was nothing that the LAPD couldn’t handle, per the outlet.
The state’s governor is usually the one to “retain control and command of California’s National Guard,” the Associated Press noted, but Trump used a provision that placed him “atop the chain of command,” the news agency added, citing Newsom’s office.
On Friday, the LAPD’s Chief of Police Jim McDonnell said in a statement shared on Facebook that “the LAPD is not involved in civil immigration enforcement,” adding that police “will not assist or participate in any sort of mass deportations nor will the LAPD try to determine an individual’s immigration status.”
“I want everyone, including our immigrant community, to feel safe calling the police in their time of need and know that the LAPD will be there for you without regard to one’s immigration status,” the officer’s post included.
As well as the arrests in L.A., approximately 60 people, including juveniles, were arrested after hundreds of protesters gathered outside of the Immigration Services building in San Francisco on Sunday, per local station KGO, citing the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD).
SFPD then confirmed the arrests in an X post, adding, “Officers recovered one firearm at the scene.”
