A 17-year-old boy is in critical condition after being stabbed Friday at a protest against President Trump’s immigration and deportation policies near Los Angeles City Hall, authorities said.
The Los Angeles Police Department received a report around 1:35 p.m. of a male victim being stabbed at 200 N. Spring St. after a fight broke out during the protest, according to a department spokesperson. The victim was taken to a hospital and an order to disperse was issued at the protest, police said.
An LAPD spokesperson said that a few people were detained in connection with the incident. At 2:12 p.m. the LAPD announced that the protest had been cleared from the Spring Street area around City Hall.
The public is asked to avoid the area, as Spring Street is closed from Temple Street to First Street while investigators gather evidence and search for witnesses, according to the LAPD.
The protest moved to the 6th Street Viaduct and was blocking westbound lanes of traffic around 2:30 p.m., prompting a temporary closure of the bridge, according to the LAPD. At 2:50 p.m. the LAPD said protesters were walking eastbound on the bridge and that it was set to reopen soon.
Friday’s rally was the sixth straight day of protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown in downtown L.A. During the week, hundreds of high school students have been walking out of classes to join the demonstrations.
Trump has vowed to carry out the largest deportation effort in U.S. history and declared a national emergency at the southern border, deploying troops there.
He has issued executive orders limiting legal pathways for entering the U.S., bolstering efforts to seal off the U.S.-Mexico border and promoting sweeps to round up and deport people who are not authorized to be in the country. Some of the orders have been challenged in court.
There are an estimated 11 million to 15 million immigrants lacking documentation in the U.S., including more than 2 million in California.
The post Teen stabbed after fight breaks out at L.A. protest against Trump’s immigration policies appeared first on Los Angeles Times.
