Federal Judge Tells LAPD to Stop Shooting at Journalists

A federal judge had to remind the police that he should not shoot journalists after several violent meetings during the demonstrations opposing the disastrous ice raids of the Trump administration in Los Angeles.

US District Judge Hernán D. Vera prevented the Los Angeles police service from wrongly preventing journalists from accessing closed areas, holding or stopping journalists while they report and use less deadly ammunition (LLM) and other crowd control weapons.

In a 14 pages depositVera said that complaints from the first amendment made by the Los Angeles Press Club were likely to succeed and granted them a temporary ban order. “Indeed, given the fundamental nature of the interests of the speech involved and the demonstrations almost daily throughout Southern California by drawing media coverage, the identified damage is undoubtedly imminent and concrete,” he wrote in a file.

Vera told several cases of journalists far from demonstrations or detainees and arrested by officers. The documentary maker and activist Anthony Orendoff was detained For four days, although he told agents that he was a member of the press.

Vera also told many cases of violence against press members. In one case, an officer seemed to target his weapon at 9News Australia Lauren Tomasi while she pointed out live, and Pulled a rubber ball who hit her in the leg in the air. The photojournalist Michael Nigro, who was held above the demonstrations in a press vest and a helmet, heard the sound of the LLMS striking a pole by the head, and later in the day was hit in the helmet by a rubber ball. Another unidentified photojournalist with a press allowance was pushed by a police officer and trampled by a police horse.

Vera prevented the police from “prohibiting a journalist from entering or staying in closed areas”. The judge also prohibited officers “to attack, interfere, interfere or obstruct any journalist” who “brings together,” receives or processes information for communication to the public “.

He also prevented the officers from “quoting, holding or arresting a journalist who is in a closed area for a lack of dispersing, violation of a curfew or an obstruction of a law enforcement agent for the collection, reception or processing of information”, or the use of LLM, such as rubber balls and other measures to control the crowd as flash-bangs and chemical irritants tear gas.

An audience for a preliminary injunction was set for July 24.