Deputy targets photojournalist with stun grenade at California protest

Ethan Noah Roy, a freelance photojournalist, was nearly hit by a crowd-control munition targeting him as he documented an immigration enforcement protest in Paramount, California, on June 7, 2025.

It was one of many protests that began June 6 in response to federal raids in and around Los Angeles of workplaces and areas where immigrant day laborers gathered, amid the Trump administration’s larger immigration crackdown.

Demonstrations the following day were centered around a Home Depot in Paramount, a predominantly Latino suburb of Los Angeles, after Border Patrol agents were spotted nearby, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Roy arrived in Paramount around 5 p.m., as LA County Sheriff’s Department deputies had cordoned off a bridge that led to the Home Depot and connected Paramount to the adjacent city of Compton.

Roy recounted to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that he identified himself as press and asked deputies if he could cross the line to continue photographing the demonstration — which they agreed to.

“They knew that I was press. They knew I was going to cross,” he said. “They told me, ‘Just be careful.’”

But as soon as he stepped past the line, Roy said one of the deputies deployed a crowd-control munition, known as a stun grenade, rolling it in his direction. He felt shrapnel fall on his helmet from the device, which is meant to disorient people with an ear-piercing bang and bright light.

What struck Roy most was the empty stretch of pavement between him and the crowd; no protesters were nearby, and he was the only one in the path of the device.

“That one felt more targeted at me,” he said.

In a statement emailed to the Tracker on June 10, the Sheriff’s Department said it prioritizes maintaining access for credentialed media, “especially during emergencies and critical incidents.”

“The LASD does not condone any actions that intentionally target members of the press, and we continuously train our personnel to distinguish and respect the rights of clearly identified journalists in the field,” a public information officer wrote. “We remain open to working with all media organizations to improve communication, transparency, and safety for all parties during public safety operations.”

At other protests over the summer, Roy was shot at with pepper balls, struck in the shoulder with a projectile and shoved by police officers.