The two men say they were seriously injured by a LAPD projectile during a protest in downtown Los Angeles over the weekend and are currently facing a long and painful recovery.
Los Angeles filmmaker Marshall Woodruff said he was hit in the face in a non-fatal round on Saturday night during the protest. “I have a lot of pain and numbness on the right side of my face,” Woodruff said from his hospital bed. “When the bullet hit my face, all I could hear was a high-pitched thud,” Woodruff said he was part of the “king’s protest” when LAPD officials began firing at the crowd after they declared the rally illegal.
The department reported that officers were attacked by protesters by throwing bottles and concrete, urging the crowd to order disperse. However, Woodruff said he had never heard clear instructions for him to leave. “There’s no one on the megaphone. No one screams clear orders,” he said. “It was just a mess.”
According to Woodruff, he was not actively acting when he saw the officers aiming for him. After the hit, he underwent five hours of surgery and the doctor said he might lose his vision in his right eye.
Singer plays the national anthem in Spanish at Dodger Stadium
Another protester, Christopher Fernandez, told registered nurse and KTLA’s Sandra Mitchell that she was also attacked by a projectile while providing medical assistance to the crowd. “I looked down and saw it was even more bloody and the pain started to start and said, ‘I think it might be worse than I thought,'” Fernandez said.
He explained his shock to be targeted. “How are you going to shoot me?” he said. “I was surprised.”
Fernandez suffered a serious leg injury and was treated in the emergency room before being released.
Both men expressed dissatisfaction with police treatment. “I think it’s ironic that their motto is to protect and serve,” Woodruff said. “It doesn’t look like they’re doing that.”
A fundraiser has been launched to cover Marshall Woodruff’s medical expenses and recovery. For more information, see his GoFundMe page.
The protest was one of several recent demonstrations in downtown Los Angeles that targeted ice activities. Earlier this week, another protester told KTLA that rubber bullets fired by LAPD officers during the same demonstration “smashed” his test circle, requiring emergency surgery.
Source link
