US Marines detain 1st civilian in Los Angeles amid protests
Active duty forces 'may temporarily detain an individual in specific circumstances,' US Northern Command says
WASHINGTON
The US Marines deployed to Los Angeles, California, in response to immigration protests detained their first civilian on Friday, according to media reports.
The US military’s Northern Command (NORTHCOM) said active duty forces “may temporarily detain an individual in specific circumstances," according to the reports.
"Any temporary detention ends immediately when the individual(s) can be safely transferred to the custody of appropriate civilian law enforcement personnel," it was quoted as saying.
The incident reportedly took place at the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, where about 200 Marines were assigned to protect federal property and personnel.
The US has assigned roughly 4,000 US National Guardsmen and 700 Marines to the streets of Los Angeles following the eruption of protests on June 6, in defiance of warnings from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Mayor Bass that the action would only serve to further inflame already-heightened tensions.
Speaking to the reporters earlier Friday, Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, who is in command of both the National Guard and Marine forces, said that the soldiers will not participate in law enforcement activities.
"Rather, they'll be focused on protecting federal law enforcement personnel," Sherman said.
When asked whether the Marines are going to be armed with firearms, he said all military members are mobilized with their assigned weapons.
"They have standard crowd control gear, which includes a helmet, their face shield, a shield, baton and gas masks," he added.
A US appeals court on Thursday allowed President Donald Trump to maintain his deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles, temporarily pausing a lower court ruling that Trump's actions "were illegal—both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution."
The protests against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown intensified in Los Angeles and spread to more than a dozen US cities, including Dallas, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio.
