Curfews Announced In L.A. And Neighboring Cities As Protesters Clash With Police

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced a curfew for downtown L.A. tonight, after days of unrest across the city over the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

The curfew begins at 8 p.m. and goes until 5:30 a.m. Sunday, in an area surrounded by the “four freeways.”

Garcetti said in a hastily organized news conference that Police Chief Michel Moore asked him to impose the curfew “so that we can clean up the debris, so we can make sure that shops are secured, so we can make sure that downtown residents can safely go around downtown.”

As protests spread across the region, Beverly Hills and West Hollywood also imposed overnight curfews. Mayor Lindsey Horvath of West Hollywood said that community’s curfew runs from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. “in an overabundance of caution.”

Meanwhile in Beverly Hills, Mayor Les Friedman said a curfew would be imposed over the same time period.

Earlier in the day demonstrators marched along Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. Many in the crowd chanted “Eat the rich,” while others carried signs that read “Justice for George Floyd.”

Back in Los Angeles, Garcetti announced details of the curfew just after 3:40 p.m. PT, as protesters clashed with officers outside the popular Farmer’s Market near the Grove, miles away from downtown.

Police formed a skirmish line along Third Street near Fairfax Avenue just after 2:30 p.m. as thousands of demonstrators took over the intersection of Third Street and Fairfax Avenue, shutting down traffic in the heavily traveled area. The crowd continued to grow as the hours passed.

Despite the heavy police presence in the area, people climbed on top of buildings and squad cars were vandalized and burned. Officers occasionally used their clubs to control the crowd.

At one point, protesters smashed the windows of a police cruiser before it went up in flames. Thick smoke could be seen billowing into the air during live coverage on CNN and several local television stations. Firemen would not enter the area without police protection, according to news reports.

Garcetti made no mention of a curfew for the Fairfax District where the Grove is located.

The LAPD declared a tactical alert, requiring all on-duty personnel to remain on duty.

Some people vented on social media about CBS, saying the company is allowing police officers to temporarily operate out of Television City — the historic building previously owned by CBS. However, the network sold the facility and only rents production stages at the site for some of its shows.

This latest unrest followed days of skirmishes in downtown L.A., after protesters — led by Black Lives Matters — blocked freeways touching off melees to bring attention to the issue of police brutality.

George Floyd, who was African American, died on May 25 after a Minneapolis police officer held him down with a knee on his neck.

Video recorded by an onlooker showed Floyd pleading “I can’t breathe,” while officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, applied pressure to his neck. As minutes passed, Floyd stopped talking and moving.

During his briefing this afternoon, L.A.’s mayor spoke of other recent police killings of African Americans, but said violent protests are not the answer.

“When the violence escalates, no one wins,” Garcetti stated. “I’m asking all of Los Angeles to take a deep breath and to step back.”

The mayor implored protesters not to “do a disservice” to Floyd’s memory.

“For that one or two percent of the protesters who think that [violence] is the way to make a statement, do not do a disservice to the memory


of George Floyd,” Garcetti said.

Chauvin, the police officer seen in the viral video with his knee on Floyd’s neck, was fired Tuesday.

After pressure from activists, ordinary citizens and celebrities, Chauvin was taken into custody Friday and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. The other three officers at the scene were fired, but have not been arrested.