A woman is suing the city and county of Los Angeles, as well as the state, alleging law enforcement from at least one agency to be determined fired projectiles that struck her twice during 2025 immigration operation protests downtown as she tried to help other demonstrators also hit by the munitions.
Jill Snyder’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit alleges negligence-based claims as well as civil rights violations, assault and battery. She also names multiple individual defendants whose names she expects to identify later and for now are named as “Doe” defendants. Snyder seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages in the suit filed July 10.
Officers for the LAPD, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the California Highway Patrol conducted crowd control during the June 2025 protests downtown and all three agencies used less-lethal munitions against people participating in the protests, including thousands fired by the LAPD and LASD, according to the suit. The complaint does not indicate which of the three agencies is allegedly responsible for harming her in either case.
Snyder alleges she was first shot in one arm about 5:45 p.m. June 8, 2025, near Temple and Alameda streets as she went to help another demonstrator who was shot in the head with a projectile. Snyder moved to a different part of the protests and again went to the aid of another demonstrator who had allegedly been hit with a projectile in one leg, the suit states.
As she went to help the second protester, Snyder was herself struck by a projectile in one leg an hour or two after being hit the first time, the suit states. Snyder posed no threats to the law enforcement members who shot her either time, according to her suit.
Snyder suffered “excruciating and prolonged pain that disrupted her daily activities” and she had “significant bruising and swelling” from both injuries, the suit alleges.
Snyder’s leg injury developed an infection and she still has nerve damage there, according to the suit, which further states scarring and emotional distress persists from both injuries.