LOS ANGELES — A 42-year-old Los Angeles felon was charged Monday with throwing an object at a vehicle on the Hollywood (101) Freeway during an immigration protest, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Martin Richard Torres is charged with one felony count each of throwing an object at a vehicle or an occupant of a vehicle with intent to do great bodily injury and vandalism over $400 in defacement with graffiti, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
The criminal complaint also alleges that he has previously been convicted of serious and/or violent felonies.
Torres is accused of throwing an object at a vehicle at about 11 a.m. last Monday, Feb. 3, and vandalizing a freeway sign near Spring Street and the 101 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles, according to prosecutors.
It was not immediately clear when he would appear in court for arraignment.
Torres was arrested Friday by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and has remained behind bars since then, jail records show.
He could face up to seven years and four months in state prison if convicted as charged, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
In a statement announcing the charges, District Attorney Nathan Hochman noted that “everyone has the right to express their views and engage in peaceful protest.”
“… But when actions cross the line into criminal behavior that endangers lives, my office will not hesitate to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law,” the district attorney said. “Throwing objects onto a busy freeway is not an act of protest. It is a reckless and dangerous crime that could seriously injure or kill innocent people. If you use a protest as a cover for criminal activity, know this — you will be caught, you will be prosecuted and you will be held accountable.”
Several protests of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies have happened in downtown Los Angeles, including one on Sunday, Feb. 2, that temporarily closed the 101 Freeway.