Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti condemned a group of anti-maskers who broke into the Westfield Century City mall on Sunday in protest against COVID-19’s health orders, sometimes harassing employees and customers.
Police made no arrests on Sunday, but received two reports of assault. Garcetti said that in the future, police will act and arrest offenders in such situations.
“Don’t test us on this because you are going to end up in prison, to be served or prosecuted,” said the mayor.
Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore earlier this week defended the way his officers handled such incidents without arrest, saying they had followed the guidance of him and other police leaders to focus first on reducing tensions .
“Our effort here is not to make the situation worse,” he said.
He said police officers received a specific set of instructions. They were instructed to first speak to the operator of any business that was being protested and then support the operator in meeting their mask requirements, informing protesters of the rules and asking them to comply.
Moore said police officers prefer not to go to the extent of having to use force in such cases, but are prepared to enforce the rules physically if offenders refuse to comply, because wearing masks is a critical issue.
“This is not just an expression of a political view,” he said. “This is a dangerous act that worries me a lot.”
He said that forcing people to obey health orders “is not the primary responsibility of the police department”, but when people “start to jeopardize the health of others and their families, it is a bridge too far. “.
Sunday’s incident, which started at a Ralphs grocery store and continued to the luxury shopping center, surprised customers and employees.
Videos on social media showed the group without masks walking around the supermarket and arguing with customers. Inside a video, you can see a man rejecting the offer of a mask, saying: “I don’t need this; I don’t wear masks. “
Another man said he was negative for the coronavirus and called a market customer a “Nazi mask”. A woman without a mask tried to hit a masked man with her shopping cart, claiming he hit her, and she was seen kicking the man in the checkout line.
“Come on, patriots, show him what’s going on,” she could be heard saying in the video.
It was the last of several anti-mask protests in Los Angeles.
Two weeks ago, a group of unmasked protesters forced their way into a Erewhon Market in the Fairfax district in protest against coronavirus restrictions. The video showed at least six police vehicles near Erewhon on Beverly Boulevard. A crowd of protesters shouted in front of the store, some shouting, “Open Los Angeles!” One person shouted, “They want you to wear a mask, they want you to block!”
Public health officials say that wearing a mask is essential to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In California, public health mandates require all residents to wear masks when away from home.
Los Angeles County reported on Thursday the fourth highest total new coronavirus cases in a single day, according to a Times count of local health jurisdictions,
As of Thursday, 18,764 new cases of coronavirus were reported, well above last week’s daily average of around 14,000. There were 205 COVID-19 deaths reported on Thursday, according to The Times count, the sixth highest number of deaths reported in a single day.
LA County now has an average of 171 deaths from COVID-19 a day last week.
COVID-19’s hospitalizations have stabilized at a high number recently, ranging from 8,000 to 8,100 Monday through Wednesday – a level that has already put LA County hospitals in crisis and created a shortage of ambulances and increased time to hospital. waiting to leave patients.
The morgues of hospitals and private morgues are already full, and the National Guard has been asked to help store the bodies in the county coroner’s office.
But probably the worst is yet to come. Most people hospitalized with COVID-19 in LA County were infected before Christmas. Only next week, experts say, statistics indicate how much worse the post-holiday increase can be.
County supervisor Hilda Solis and public health officials expressed dismay at the protests against the mask.
“Despite what the protesters say, this is not a scam,” said Solis. “Just take a look at our hospitals – hospitals where care now needs to be rationed. And it will only get worse if we give in to the reopening demands at a time when our cases, hospitalizations and deaths continue to skyrocket. “
Solis added: “In fact, it is very counterproductive to lift restrictions and allow the virus to spread even more uncontrollably. This will only further damage the economy and continue to take lives. ”
A Kaiser Family Foundation screening survey found that 70% of Americans thought they could follow the guidelines for social detachment for more than six months or until a vaccine was widely available. Almost the same proportion claims to wear a protective mask every time they leave home.
Times staff writers Iris Lee and Hayley Smith contributed to this report.