Immigration Agents Conduct More Raids in LA, Clashing Again With Protesters

Protesters and immigration officials clashed again in Los Angeles County on Saturday as agents conducted raids at a Home Depot, local officials said, just a day after dramatic standoffs at similar workplace raids elsewhere in the area.

In Paramount, Calif., about 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles, protesters squared off with federal immigration agents after at least two immigration raids took place on Saturday, including one at the Home Depot and another at a nearby meatpacking facility.

Video of the protests showed agents using what appeared to be flash-bang grenades to disperse the protesters. Immigrant rights advocates said that the agents, who were wearing riot gear, had also used some type of tear gas to break up the crowds. José Luis Solache Jr., a state assembly member, said on social media that he was among those who were hit with tear gas.

The standoff followed a series of immigration raids that swept through Los Angeles on Friday, which resulted in chaos outside a federal building downtown where people detained in the raids were being processed.

The streets swelled with protesters, and buildings and vehicles were vandalized with spray paint. Some people threw objects at federal agents, who then responded with flash-bang grenades. Just on Friday, agents arrested more than 120 people, federal officials said. But processing those arrests were delayed because of the protests.

On Saturday, Trump administration officials blasted the city’s response to the Friday operations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, criticizing Los Angeles officials for not helping the federal agents, as well as blaming Democrats for the unrest.