Violent demonstrators attacked police, vandalized a sidewalk, and smashed a local business on Tuesday evening during a protest against the Supreme Court’s impending decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion decision.
The gathering was initially peaceful, as several hundred people gathered in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles to share their outrage at a leaked majority decision in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case.
Pro-choice activists march in protest after gathering outside the US Courthouse to defend abortion rights in downtown Los Angeles on May 3, 2022. – The Supreme Court is poised to strike down the right to abortion in the US, according to a leaked draft of a majority opinion that would shred nearly 50 years of constitutional protections. The draft, obtained by Politico, was written by Justice Samuel Alito, and has been circulated inside the conservative-dominated court, the news outlet reported. Politico stressed that the document it obtained is a draft and opinions could change. The court is expected to issue a decision by June. The draft opinion calls the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade decision “egregiously wrong from the start.” (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
The decision, written by Justice Samuel Alito and joined by four other conservative justices, restricted the holding in the case to abortion, though Democrats tried to inflame outrage by claiming all other privacy rights and social issues were affected.
At the federal courthouse in Downtown Los Angeles, pro-choice activists are protesting the leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court to overturn Roe V. Wade and end abortion rights protections. pic.twitter.com/5B3QknrJ0Y
— Vishal P. Singh (they/he) 🏳️⚧️ (@VPS_Reports) May 4, 2022
Later, however, the event turned violent, as demonstrators tried to take over an intersection, and some threw rocks and bottles at police.
Receiving update on protest @ Pershing Square. A segment of the group began to take the intersection. We attempted to communicate, clear and provide dispersal order to the group. Crowd began to throw rocks and bottles at ofcrs . We have one ofcr injured( Unk extent). https://t.co/nYMbwTUsxj
— Chief Michel Moore (@LAPDChiefMoore) May 4, 2022
As the Los Angeles Times reported, some also sprayed graffiti in front of City Hall, and attacked police vehicles:
Around 7:30 p.m., officers escorted a group of about 250 demonstrators marching from the courthouse at Broadway and 1st Street to Pershing Square, said Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore. At some point, a group started to take over an intersection.
…
Police slowly drove a pair of vehicles into the intersection, moving about 40 protesters out of the way. Some were seen pounding on the hoods of the vehicles; most left the intersection.
…
One person smashed the window of a law enforcement vehicle near Grand Park, and others tagged a bus stop with the words “Google LASD gangs.”
[“LASD gangs” is a reference to reports of gangs within the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, an ongoing local scandal.]
The Times also noted that a glass door of a local Planet Fitness location was smashed during the clashes with police.
Video of the confrontations circulated online:
Pro-abortion protestors smash windows tonight in Los Angeles: pic.twitter.com/HwGyOqGd0Z
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) May 4, 2022
NOW: LAPD attempt to arrest pro-choice protesters but fail as they get mobbed by rioters. pic.twitter.com/XWn9xC23Hk
— Katie Daviscourt🇺🇸 (@KatieDaviscourt) May 4, 2022
Some law enforcement officials were from the Department of Homeland Security, who arrived to assist local police forces.
The Department of Homeland Security is getting aggressive here in Downtown Los Angeles at the pro-choice protest pic.twitter.com/dX12CVqK8Y
— Vishal P. Singh (they/he) 🏳️⚧️ (@VPS_Reports) May 4, 2022
This was the same law enforcement agency that then-Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) referred to as a “paramilitary” force when officers tried to protect a federal courthouse from Black Lives Matter rioters in Portland in 2020.
On Tuesday, Harris issued a statement declaring it was “time to fight for women and our country with everything we have.”
This is the time to fight for women and our country with everything we have. My statement on the Supreme Court decision draft on Roe v. Wade. pic.twitter.com/5tvjOUTmZ2
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) May 3, 2022
There were other demonstrations across California, with several hundred protesters gathering in front of federal buildings in San Francisco and Oakland, as well as outside a federal courthouse in Sacramento, the state capital.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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