Arrests made after "No Kings" protest in downtown Los Angeles leads to LAPD dispersal order
Multiple people were arrested after a "No Kings" rally took to downtown Los Angeles city streets on Saturday, marking the third round of such protests in recent months in which demonstrators voiced their displeasure with policies set forth by the Trump administration.
Organizers said that as many as 50,000 were expected to be on hand in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon. That rally and subsequent march were set for 2 p.m. at Gloria Molina Grand Park, just outside City Hall.
As the rally continued downtown on Saturday, Los Angeles Police Department officers told CBS LA that the city was on "tactical alert" and that a dispersal order was issued just after 5:30 p.m., urging people on Alameda between Aliso and Temple to leave the area within 15 minutes or be subject to arrest.
They said that "multiple demonstrators" failed to disperse and were being taken into custody at around 6 p.m. At the same time, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli also posted on social media to note that federal agents have "started arresting those who assaulted our personnel at the Los Angeles courthouse."
"To those who were smashing concrete blocks and throwing them at our officers, we have you on video," Essayli's post said. "We will find you and arrest you too. You've been warned."
The rallies, which organizers described as choosing "democracy over dictatorship," began last June and were held again in October. Saturday, the first nationally-planned demonstration since the January killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of federal agents in Minnesota, was expected to be the largest showing yet, organizers say.
"A lot of people want to help, they just don't know where to start," said 50501 SoCal organizer Emily Williams. "No Kings is that starting point. It's about community, about showing up for each other, and about turning concern into real action you can be part of."
President Trump and other members of Republican leadership have dismissed prior "No Kings" rallies. In October, he told Fox News that he's simply "not a king," while House Speaker Mike Johnson referred to the protests as a "Hate America Rally."
"You're going to bring together the Marxists, the Socialists, the Antifa advocates, the anarchists and the pro-Hamas wing of the far-left Democrat Party," he said.
Crews on Friday installed gates on the 101 Freeway on and off-ramps at Los Angeles Street in anticipation of the large-scale march. A Caltrans spokesperson said the California Highway Patrol requested the gates, since the freeway has been impacted by past marches.
"During previous protest activities, this location has seen pedestrians walk onto the highway using these ramps, creating unsafe conditions for pedestrians and motorists," the spokesperson wrote in an email. "They will be used only as needed to ensure people are out of harm's way of fast-moving vehicles and motorists can safely use the highway."
In both previous instances in downtown LA, dispersal orders have been issued well after the scheduled end time for the marches, resulting in numerous arrests.
In a statement to X, Mayor Karen Bass called the planned protest "democracy in action."
"Peaceful protest is our constitutional right," she said. "When people come together to make their voices heard, that is democracy in action. Please stay safe and look out for one another."
Thousands of rallies are planned across the country, including several dozens in Southern California.
