Two federal detention officers were hospitalized Sunday after being attacked by protesters outside the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in downtown Los Angeles. The incident occurred as a group of 40 to 50 demonstrators protested the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Videos circulating on social media show protesters confronting the officers as they finished their shift and walked to their cars. Some protesters followed the officers to a parking lot, where the confrontation escalated. One video depicts an officer being struck multiple times by individuals in the crowd, while another shows a protester snatching a clear bag from a federal employee.
The federal employee, carrying a firearm, attempted to disengage from the group of protesters who were filming him on their phones. According to a statement from the LAPD Central Division, demonstrators "suddenly and deliberately attacked the federal employees striking them multiple times." LAPD Central Officers were called to the scene in response to multiple 911 calls.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli stated that attacking a federal officer is a felony and warned that individuals involved in such assaults face arrest and charges. He also noted that officers are permitted to use reasonable force in self-defense.
The LAPD has arrested two protesters in connection with the incident. Detectives are investigating the encounter as felony and misdemeanor battery. The condition of the hospitalized officers has not been released.
The MDC, which houses an immigration detention facility, has been the site of previous activist demonstrations, fueled by rumors of undocumented migrants being held in the facility's basement.