An Australian TV journalist was shot by a rubber bullet while covering the immigration protests in Los Angeles on Monday.
Lauren Tomasi, a 9News reporter, was reporting from outside the Metropolitan Detention Centre in downtown LA when she was shot at by the officers as they moved in to break up the protest, as per The Independent.
The video shared on X (formerly Twitter) captures the moment the journalist is struck during the tense standoff between protesters and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. Watch here:
Just moments after finishing a live report for Australian viewers, an officer pointed his gun at Lauren Tomasi and fired a rubber bullet at her from close range. She cried out in pain, and the camera quickly turned away.
Although she was in pain, Tomasi wasn’t seriously hurt. Later that evening on the news, she said both she and her cameraman, Jimmy, were safe. She explained that this kind of danger is sometimes part of covering intense situations like these and described the day as very tense in Los Angeles.
It’s still not known whether the rubber bullet was fired by the LAPD or another agency involved in countering the protests.
The incident happened during the third day of violent demonstrations in Los Angeles, which broke out after mass arrests of people accused of living in the country illegally.
In a statement, the 9news network added that the incident is “a stark reminder of the inherent dangers journalists can face while reporting from the frontlines of protests.”
Speaking on the incident, Tomasi later took to X and said, “I’m a bit sore, but I’m okay. Important we keep on telling the stories that need to be told. Here’s our report on what unfolded in Los Angeles.”