A California man was arrested for attempted murder after using a makeshift flamethrower on a police officer during the Los Angeles “Night of Rage” pro-abortion riot.
The Los Angeles Police Department arrested and charged 30-year-old Michael Ortiz after he attacked the officer, who had to be hospitalized with burn injuries.
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The violent riot took place on Friday in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
The LAPD said in a statement, “The vast majority of those involved were peaceful and law-abiding, however, a much smaller group of individuals took to the streets with the intention of creating chaos and destruction…The Los Angeles Police Department has the distinction of facilitating First Amendment Rights for all Angelenos. Equally, the Department will enforce the law when individuals engage in violence. Those who expressed themselves peacefully today are appreciated and recognized by the Los Angeles Police Department.”
“I condemn the violence against officers that occurred last night and into today,” LAPD Chief Michel Moore said in a press release. “Individuals participating in such criminal activity are not exercising their 1st Amendment rights in protest of the Supreme Court decision, rather, they are acting as criminals. The Department will vigorously pursue prosecution of these individuals.”
Ortiz remained held on $1 million bail as of Saturday evening.
During the riot, several other officers were hit with “what appeared to be fireworks and projectiles,” according to a report from ABC 7.
Earlier in the evening, around 6 p.m., protesters blocked the northbound side of the in 110 Freeway at Fifth Street. “One man was seen prodding a large rod at a passing car,” the CBS report stated. The busy intersection of Highland Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood was also blocked by the activists.
Abortion will remain legal in California, according to Governor Gavin Newsom.