Incident details
- Date of incident
- October 18, 2025
- Location
- Los Angeles, California
- Assailant
- Law enforcement
- Was the journalist targeted?
- Yes
Assault
A mounted police officer at a “No Kings” protest in Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025. Reporter Kayjel Mairena was struck with a projectile and nearly trampled by a horse while covering the demonstration.
Kayjel Mairena, a student journalist for Santa Monica College’s The Corsair, was struck in the side with a police-fired projectile and nearly trampled by a mounted officer while covering a “No Kings” protest in downtown Los Angeles, California, on Oct. 18, 2025.
The police actions at the rally, which was one of thousands nationwide that day voicing opposition to the Trump administration, appeared to violate a state law and federal injunction prohibiting officers from firing munitions at members of the press.
Mairena, news editor for The Corsair, told the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker that Los Angeles Police Department officers on horseback charged at a group of journalists and protesters as police blocked entry to parts of the demonstration.
The crowd, including Mairena and other members of the press, was pushed into a tight area as the horses advanced, forcing people to back away to avoid being trampled. As police lines moved forward, Mairena said officers restricted journalists’ movement and forced them behind a line of vehicles, where visibility was limited.
“Once they said the press were agitators, whatever they were doing felt intentional,” Mairena said. “If you run, you kind of risk being shot in the back, but if you’re walking backwards, you can also risk falling. If you walk too slow, you can get trampled.”
It was in that confusion, he said, that he was struck on the side by a crowd-control munition fired by the LAPD to disperse demonstrators. Mairena, who was wearing clothing and credentials identifying him as press, said he had moved behind a group of other credentialed journalists when the round struck him on his right side. He said he was not seriously injured.
The experience, though, has worsened his post-traumatic stress from previous military service and revisiting the photos later triggered a panic attack.
“I am terrified of the mounted units,” he said. “I’m at more risk now than when I was in the Navy.”
The LAPD said in a statement that it is investigating all use-of-force incidents from Oct. 18 and could not comment on active investigations.
Mairena, while on assignment Sept. 1, was also pepper-sprayed and hit with a pepper ball fired by Department of Homeland Security officers.
The U.S. Press Freedom Tracker catalogs press freedom violations in the United States. Email tips to [email protected].
