A tattoo artist is suing the city of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County and the state of California, alleging he has lost earnings after being shot from behind with a law enforcement projectile while protesting illegal immigration raids in downtown Los Angeles.
Azize Ngo’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit does not specify which agency allegedly discharged the less-lethal shell on June 9, 2025, but it does state that members of the Los Angeles Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the California Highway Patrol were all using the weapons.
Ngo’s suit alleges assault, battery, negligence and civil rights violations. He seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages. A representative for the City Attorney’s Office did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the suit brought Friday.
Ngo contends he was with other protesters upset with federal immigration enforcement, but that he and the others were not violent. Ngo further says he and others were shot from behind in their upper legs while they were walking away from law enforcement.
Ngo maintains that he and the others shot suffered “excruciating and prolonged pain” that disrupted their daily activities, including sleep and ability to use the restroom. He says his injuries have impacted his capability of working as a tattoo artist and that he and the others injured have additionally suffered anxiety, fear and nightmares.