Los Angeles police arrested more than 500 people this week as protests erupted across the city against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown and federal troop deployment, according to the LAPD. The unrest prompted mass arrests Tuesday night, with police citing curfew violations and looting.
Demonstrations have persisted since Friday, driven by outrage over U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in immigrant-heavy neighborhoods. Federal agents reportedly detained pregnant women, garment workers, and gardeners without warrants, sparking what Governor Gavin Newsom called a "indiscriminately targeting hard-working immigrant families."
"Multiple groups continue to congregate," the LAPD posted on X late Tuesday. "Those groups are being addressed and mass arrests are being initiated." Police confirmed at least 25 arrests Tuesday night and over 300 across two days, with estimates exceeding 500 since the protests began.
Mayor Karen Bass imposed a nightly curfew from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. across a square-mile section of downtown, citing vandalism and looting. The LAPD reported 23 businesses were looted Monday night alone, as small groups used the cover of darkness to smash windows, set fires, and deface storefronts.
President Trump escalated the confrontation by ordering 4,000 National Guard members and 700 active-duty Marines into Los Angeles. The federal troops began arriving Tuesday night, patrolling areas around government buildings. Their stated mission: protect federal facilities and support ICE operations. The Pentagon said the deployment will cost taxpayers at least $134 million.
"We will not allow an American city to be invaded and conquered by a foreign enemy," Trump told troops during a military address Tuesday at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, calling the LA protesters "animals" and "foreign invaders." He suggested invoking the Insurrection Act, stating: "If there's an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We'll see."
Governor Newsom filed a lawsuit Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, seeking an emergency injunction to halt the military deployment. He accused Trump of seizing control of California's National Guard without consent and warned of a growing authoritarian threat.
"That's just weakness masquerading as strength," Newsom said in a public speech. "If some of us can be snatched off the streets without a warrant based only on suspicion or skin color, then none of us are safe."
California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined the legal action, alleging that Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were unlawfully deploying military personnel with a "warrior culture" to American neighborhoods. A federal judge has scheduled a hearing for Thursday but declined to issue an immediate restraining order.
Critics argue the deployment risks inflaming tensions. "The arrival of federal military forces in Los Angeles, absent clear coordination, presents a significant logistical and operational challenge," said Jim McDonnell, LAPD Chief. He said the department has decades of experience handling large-scale protests without military intervention.
Senator Alex Padilla said his office received no advance warning about the troop deployment. "The Department of Defense isn't sure what the mission is here," he told the Associated Press. "The deployment of National Guard only serves to escalate tensions... It's exactly what Donald Trump wanted to do."
Frank Bowman, a law professor, stated that Trump is attempting to stretch emergency powers to justify deploying troops. The president "is trying to use emergency declarations to justify bringing in first the National Guard and then mobilizing Marines," Bowman said, noting the Insurrection Act has not been formally invoked.
Protests have also spread beyond Los Angeles. Demonstrators in cities including New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Austin rallied against ICE operations. In Atlanta's Brookhaven suburb, protester Brendon Terra said, "You got people that are being arrested on the street by [immigration] agents that don't wear badges, wear masks... it makes me really angry."
Photographs released by the U.S. Marine Corps showed Marines training with riot shields and crowd control tactics at Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach, preparing for what officials said would be a 60-day presence. Northcom stated the Marines would "seamlessly integrate" with local operations to support federal personnel.
