By Amber Schultz
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has labelled the police shooting of Nine US correspondent Lauren Tomasi as “unacceptable”, but declined to say whether he would personally raise the incident with President Donald Trump.
Tomasi was reporting live from the protests in Los Angeles when an officer appeared to turn and fire a rubber bullet at her leg on Monday morning AEST.
Tomasi said she is bruised but otherwise uninjured, and continued working.
Addressing the National Press Club in Canberra on Tuesday afternoon, Albanese said he had seen the “horrific” footage and spoken with Tomasi.
“[That was] an Australian journalist doing what journalists do at their very best … In LA, it is not unreasonable to think that she would not have been targeted with a rubber bullet,” he said.
“[She was] clearly identified as media. There was no ambiguity … We don’t find it acceptable that it occurred.”
California National Guard troops form a line outside a federal building in downtown Los Angeles on Monday (Tuesday AEST).Credit: AP
Albanese said the issue had been raised with the US administration, but refused to say whether he would personally raise the issue with Trump.
“I’ll leave the discussions with the president until they occur,” he said.
The chief executive officer of Nine, Matt Stanton, said he welcomed an investigation into the incident by the Los Angeles Police Department and would write to the commissioner offering his support.
“Our focus has been on providing all the support Lauren and our camera operator James Phillips need in the aftermath of Sunday’s incident. As 9News continues to cover these dramatic and troubling events in Los Angeles for Australian audiences, the safety of our 9News teams in the US remains the priority,” Stanton said in a statement on Tuesday afternoon.
“The video footage captured by our team on Sunday showing a projectile fired from a police officer’s weapon was shocking and raised concerns from around the world, with valid questions around what could in any way have justified the actions taken by the police officer.”
Stanton thanked Albanese and other members of the government saying their “active and direct engagement....played an important role in ensuring an investigation has been established in such a timely manner.”
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Tomasi has been covering the unrest in Los Angeles, where 2000 National Guard members and 700 marines have been deployed by the US president to help “restore order” following a series of protests against immigration raids.
The protests evolved into riots, with cars set on fire and objects lobbed at police. Police deployed tear gas and fired rubber bullets at demonstrators.
Speaking on Nine’s Today show on Tuesday morning, Tomasi said her injuries were minor.
“I have a bit of a bloody big old bruise, and it’s a little bit sore, but I am all OK,” she said.
“It’s a really crappy thing that’s happened. But I really don’t want to be the story … it’s a really chaotic situation that’s unfolding in Los Angeles.”
The day of the shooting, Tomasi went live around 5am LA time after “thousands of protesters” appeared on the street.
“We felt that presence of the Los Angeles Police Department and law enforcement really ramp up and [we] went live … police started pushing their way up the street. They’d begun firing tear gas canisters and those rubber bullets, and we moved on to the sidewalk, really tried to stay out of the way,” she said.
“I was really focused on the camera and was finishing that report … and I got hit. [Cameraman] Jimmy scooped me up, and we made our way out of there as quickly as possible. It was a bit of a shock.”
British photographer Nick Stern was also hit in the leg by a rubber bullet, and had to be carried away by protesters.
Tasmania Greens senator Nick McKim has called the incident “shocking” and questioned whether the officer’s actions were deliberate.
“It certainly looked deliberately done. And if it was, that’s absolutely … a cowardly act,” he said on Today.
Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Amanda Rishworth said journalists should be safe at work.
“I understand [Tomasi] is OK and she wasn’t seriously injured, but Australia absolutely believes in the freedom of journalists to do their job and to do their job safely, and that journalists should be protected. And so this is obviously a very difficult circumstance.”
In a statement on social media, the union representing Australian journalists said the “shocking” footage was “evidence of the lengths media workers go to report the truth”.
“Journalists reporting from the front line of protests and wars fulfil the essential role of bearing witness, and should be accorded the same protections as other frontline workers,” the statement read.
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