Times photographer Luke Johnson caught the moment he worked on Senator Alex Padilla and handcuffed him on Thursday when authorities paused a press conference for Homeland Security Secretary Christie Noem in Los Angeles.
Johnson’s image captures many of the key moments of the encounter that sparked controversy amid President Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Padilla tries to talk
The senator stood near the wall on one side of the room before interrupting the gnome and trying to ask a question.
“I’m Senator Alex Padilla,” he said. One agent grabbed his jacket and thrust it backwards into his chest and arms. “I have a question for my secretary. The fact in question is that you are a half dozen violent criminals spinning over you – your…”
“Hands off!” Padilla said as three agents shoved him into another room.
The agent grabs him
Padilla is defeated
Videos from the press conference show the agent forced Padilla to her knee and handcuffed her.
Padilla speaks up
The senator later held a press conference explaining what had happened.
“I was forced to the ground and handcuffed,” Padilla said. “I was not arrested. I wasn’t taken into custody.”
If this is how the Trump administration handles “senators with questions,” Padilla said with tears in his eyes, “I can only imagine what they’re doing to cooks, the workers on a day in the Los Angeles community.”
Source link
