latimes--2020-05-31--Column One: A coronavirus commune with 16 people? 'Who's to say we're not family?'

The plan started simply enough .
As the pandemic forced schools to shutter in March , three families in a leafy corner of downtown Riverside banded together to make sure all their children kept learning .
The record-producer dad taught music classes .
The court-commissioner mom gave speech lessons .
There was time for art and silent reading and yoga and schoolwork assigned remotely by teachers who seemed very far away .
Class began at 9 a.m. , no pajamas , no excuses .
But achieving that modest goal — caring for each other ’ s children — became far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mounted .
What began as a home school dubbed the Brothbush Academy ended up as a kind of coronavirus commune , as the quarantined families came to depend on each other to stay healthy and safe .
The Bristows and the Roths live side by side in century-old houses , one Craftsman-style , one Spanish Revival .
Classes are held in one home or the other , and the gate separating their yards swings wide seven days a week , a constant stream of kids and parents , dogs and food , flowing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 900 feet away — walk to the corner , hang a right , and you ’ re there .
The families had been inseparable since long before anyone heard of COVID-19 .
Which is what made the March 28 meeting at the Roths ’ long dining room table so painful .
After dinner , the grownups began hashing out the most difficult details of caring for seven adults and nine children ranging in age from 6 to 14 as the deadly disease spread around the globe .
Hard choices normally made in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ being debated by a committee .
The group had to figure out how to balance its collective well-being against the needs of two of its members : Truck driver Will Furbush , the group ’ s only “ essential ” worker , whose livelihood requires him to be out in the dangerous world , and Dalina Furbush , his 14-year-old daughter from an earlier relationship , who was about to leave the safe circle to spend time with her mother .
The Bristows , Roths and Furbushes had vowed to support each other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all , they ’ d had each others ’ backs for years .
But the choices they would make had the power to shatter the tight bond that held them together .
When Will and Dalina ventured out into an environment that could not be controlled , would the group allow them to come back home ?
Before the commune came the school .
And before the school came the schedule , Kristen Bristow ’ s effort to bring order to coronavirus chaos .
Kristen had spent nearly two decades teaching third grade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ So , when school ended abruptly on Friday , March 13 , she knew she had to do something to keep her family from lolling around in pajamas for weeks at a time .
Starting on March 16 , the three Bristow girls had six and a half proscribed hours a day : 9 a.m. classwork ; 10 a.m. physical education ; 11 a.m. , more classwork ; noon , lunch ; and on and on .
The Roth kids joined in a few days later , bringing the student load to six @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with it , the big decisions .
Gov .
Gavin Newsom had put the whole state on lockdown .
Dr. Cameron Kaiser , the Riverside County public health officer , had banned all gatherings of more than 10 people .
And Gabe Roth asked Kristen and her husband Dave if the Furbushes — Will , who is married to Gabe ’ s sister Samra , and the three Furbush children — could join the collective home school .
All of a sudden , there would be 16 people in the quarantine commune , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s sister-in-law sent her a text : “ I guess your whole ‘ school thing ’ is out the door.
” A few weeks later , Kristen recounted her hopeful response : “ But families are not subjected to that.
” She was sitting on the Roths ’ porch , trying to keep her face mask in place while explaining the intricacies of Brothbush Academy .
On the other side of a big front window , Gabe was playing a sequence of notes on a guitar and having the little kids echo @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We just decided , who ’ s to say we ’ re not family ?
” Kristen continued .
“ Not that we wanted to break any rules .
But it was so beneficial to all of us , and we ’ re being so careful.
” Staying in was the order of the day .
All groceries were purchased online and delivered .
Food was shared .
No one outside of the three families and Wayne Gordon , a visitor from Brooklyn who was stranded at the Roths ’ for nearly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ homes .
No grandparents .
No friends .
Interviews for this article were conducted from at least six feet away , through masks or on the phone .
Neither the reporter nor the photographer set foot in any of the three houses .
“ We ’ re really trying to compensate for the luxury of being together by being extra vigilant in our contact with everybody else , ” Gabe said during an interview at his roomy , brown-shingled home .
He was inside the house , the front door closed .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ If there ’ s a way to do something with less risk or no risk , how much sacrifice is it ?
” he asked .
“ Which is why I ’ m talking with you on the phone.
” Students at Brothbush Academy have learned a few things that aren ’ t in the curriculum at what they call “ real school.
” At 9 a.m. on a Thursday in April , Andie Bristow was already at the kitchen table , her head peeking up over her sky-blue laptop .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ little buns and she was munching on cantaloupe , clutching her baby doll , ready for school .
At 6 years old , Andie is the youngest Brothbush student , and the start of her school day went something like this : Andie : Mommy , do I have my [ Google ] meet now ?
Kristen : No , it ’ s at 9:30 .
You have half an hour .
The Brothbush parents are not fans of distance learning for the youngest students — children such as Sylvester Roth , 8 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ learning the basics — but twice each week , Andie clicks into a live video chat via Google Classroom with her two teachers and 20 or so fellow first-graders at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School .
The group ’ s done video scavenger hunts and guessing games and accomplished a little math here and there .
On this morning , when the meeting time rolled around , Andie had a crackly white plastic bag in her hand and a big smile on her face .
She ’ d picked three friends to guess what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no one was making any headway .
She laughed and pulled out the mystery object , waving it in front of the webcam so the whole class could see .
Ta da !
“ It ’ s a marker , ” she said , triumphant .
Penelope Roth , 11 , and Carmen Furbush , 10 , were at the Bristows ’ dining room table , heads bent over laptops .
Kat Bristow , at 12 one of two middle-schoolers in the bunch , was curled up in an overstuffed chair , typing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the chair ’ s striped arm .
The highlight of every school day starts at 1:30 p.m .
Lunch , music , art and silent reading have ended , and the students gather around the Roths ’ dining room table .
Sometimes there is instruction , but often the students are paired up — a young child with an older one — and given a research assignment that ends in a presentation to the group .
They ’ ve looked into nutrition , reporting on what happens if you have too much or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or protein .
They ’ ve researched life in other countries , and what makes people tick , sharing the intricacies of culture and diet .
But on this Thursday afternoon , the group had a special assignment : Each pair of students had to assess the pros and cons of home school and “ real school.
” They were unanimous on just a few things , such as the superiority of home school bathrooms and lunches .
Their judgments were rendered the old-fashioned way — handwritten on paper or white board .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ good about real school is there ’ s nothing good about real school , except my teachers and friends .
Rosie Roth , age 9 : The good things about home school is you get to wake up at 8 a.m. instead of 6 .
And you get to swim in the pool , which is awesome .
The bad things are : We .
Turn .
In .
To .
Ro .
Bots .
Stair .
Ring .
At .
Our .
Com .
Pute .
Er .
Screens .
Too .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ t operate in a bubble .
For all the precautions the families have been taking , two factors are out of its control : a teenager who needs to see her mother and an essential worker who must be on the road .
Even without the coronavirus , Will Furbush wages a constant battle against germs when he travels in his Freightliner Cascadia , 76 feet long when a trailer ’ s attached .
He wears gloves to pump diesel and work on the truck .
He keeps a 32-ounce bottle of hand @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s interior with Lysol .
Long-haul trucking is a solitary life ; it ’ s even lonelier with coronavirus restrictions .
But when he is not on the road , no money comes in .
Truck payments and insurance bills do not go away .
“ Looking at the industry , it ’ s like , you don ’ t feel like you ’ re essential , ” Will said .
“ You feel like you ’ re a slave .
You have to go to work .
If you don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and his daughter Dalina left the Furbushes ’ gray shingle house on April 1 , they did not know when they would see it again .
Days earlier , at the family meeting in the Roths ’ dining room , the adults had agreed on a plan they hoped would keep the families safe without banishing two members of their inner circle .
Will had promised to quarantine himself for 14 days at a cousin ’ s in Long Beach after each run .
Dalina , who during normal times alternates each week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her dad ’ s , would stay away for the month of April , at the very least .
“ That to me was the hardest , ” Gabe said .
“ Trying to make these decisions about when can you come home and when can you not come home ... and doing this communally.
” On April 8 , Will was finishing a run and heading back to Southern California .
He planned to be here for five days , but Long Beach and the cousin ’ s house hadn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ backup plan .
Samra just knew that she didn ’ t want her husband sleeping in the truck , so close and yet so far away .
“ I wanted him to come home , ” she said .
“ Him quarantining somewhere else is stupid .
I missed him.
” So she set up a conference call .
Will was in the Freightliner , driving .
The Brothbush Academy adults were in the Bristows ’ living room .
Samra had planned to connect with Will beforehand so they could figure out how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was safe enough to come home between runs .
But the strategy session never took place .
She dialed Will ’ s number , put her cellphone on speaker and set it on the coffee table .
And Will promised yet again to stay away for 14 days after every trip .
“ It all went backwards from the way I wanted it to happen , ” Samra recounted .
“ I was in this weird position .
He was going to end up in town for five days .
I wanted him @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a tense situation.
” On April 10 at 11 p.m. , Will called .
He said he was already in L.A. County .
Samra asked him what he was going to do .
He said he didn ’ t know .
The Furbush home was filled with girls , a Brothbush sleepover .
“ I said , ‘ Come home ’ , ” Samra recounted .
“ He said , ‘ We should talk to everyone.
’ ...
The next morning at around 8:30 , I texted everyone .
‘ Will ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be here a few days .
Is it cool if he comes home ?
’ ” She didn ’ t hear back until early afternoon .
By then , the kids were all at the Bristows ’ , or maybe the Roths ’ ( if it ’ s not one , it ’ s the other ) .
And Will was already home .
“ No one said , ‘ you ’ re kicked out of the band , ’ ” Not directly , anyway .
But later that weekend , she talked @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ We ’ re all going to go to our houses for a week and regroup , ’ ” she recounted .
During that period , the families stayed in their own homes with no face-to face communication .
There were no joint classes ; the children could not play together ; no meals were shared .
A few days later , Will left again , this time for nearly a month .
Classes and harmony resumed at Brothbush Academy .
On May 10 , he returned to Riverside .
He picked up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and they headed home .
The house was empty .
A “ Welcome Home ” sign hung over the front door .
Samra , Allison and Carmen were staying at the Roths ’ .
Will and Dalina got tested for the virus the next day .
If the tests came back negative , the Furbushes would reunite .
If not , the father and daughter would quarantine together for two more weeks .
Samra and the Brothbush students walked over later that day to welcome Will and Dalina home and to celebrate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Furbushes have an old boat parked on a trailer in front of the house , and Will and Dalina had already climbed in .
Everyone else stood on the sidewalk .
Social distance .
“ We purposely stayed in the boat to stay away from them , because otherwise there might ’ ve been a slip-up , ” Will said from his porch swing .
Dalina was seated close beside him .
Their shoulders touched .
They wore protective masks .
“ My youngest is trying to inch closer and closer .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that she really wants to just ... ” Will paused , choked up .
He could not finish the sentence .
She really wants to just hug me .
“ That was really tough for me , to try to keep the strength together to not just grab my baby .
That ’ s my baby.
” The test results for Will and Dalina had been promised in 48 to 72 hours .
They actually took a couple of days more .
For the three families — and especially for a stressed and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stretch of the whole pandemic .
The test results arrived on May 15 .
Negative for both .
Samra texted the next morning : “ We are all back home together now .
”

The plan started simply enough. As the pandemic forced schools to shutter in March, three families in a leafy corner of downtown Riverside banded together to make sure all their children kept learning.
The record-producer dad taught music classes. The court-commissioner mom gave speech lessons. There was time for art and silent reading and yoga and schoolwork assigned remotely by teachers who seemed very far away. Class began at 9 a.m., no pajamas, no excuses.
Allison Furbush cheers thinking that PE is next on the schedule after science class. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
But achieving that modest goal — caring for each other’s children — became far more complicated as the virus’ toll mounted. What began as a home school dubbed the Brothbush Academy ended up as a kind of coronavirus commune, as the quarantined families came to depend on each other to stay healthy and safe.
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The Bristows and the Roths live side by side in century-old houses, one Craftsman-style, one Spanish Revival. Classes are held in one home or the other, and the gate separating their yards swings wide seven days a week, a constant stream of kids and parents, dogs and food, flowing back and forth. The Furbushes live 900 feet away — walk to the corner, hang a right, and you’re there.
The families had been inseparable since long before anyone heard of COVID-19. Which is what made the March 28 meeting at the Roths’ long dining room table so painful.
Will Furbush and his daughter Dalina, 14, from a previous relationship are unable to join his wife Samra, the Bristows and Roths because they have been away from home and fear infecting the other families if they test positive for COVID-19 in the midst of the pandemic. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Former third-grade teacher Kristen Bristow listens to her daughter Andie, 6, on the porch of their Craftsman-style home. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
After dinner, the grownups began hashing out the most difficult details of caring for seven adults and nine children ranging in age from 6 to 14 as the deadly disease spread around the globe. Hard choices normally made in the confines of a single family were suddenly being debated by a committee.
The group had to figure out how to balance its collective well-being against the needs of two of its members: Truck driver Will Furbush, the group’s only “essential” worker, whose livelihood requires him to be out in the dangerous world, and Dalina Furbush, his 14-year-old daughter from an earlier relationship, who was about to leave the safe circle to spend time with her mother.
The Bristows, Roths and Furbushes had vowed to support each other through the dark time ahead. After all, they’d had each others’ backs for years. But the choices they would make had the power to shatter the tight bond that held them together.
When Will and Dalina ventured out into an environment that could not be controlled, would the group allow them to come back home?
::
Before the commune came the school. And before the school came the schedule, Kristen Bristow’s effort to bring order to coronavirus chaos.
COLUMN ONE COLUMN ONE A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times. More Stories
Kristen had spent nearly two decades teaching third grade in the Riverside Unified School District. So, when school ended abruptly on Friday, March 13, she knew she had to do something to keep her family from lolling around in pajamas for weeks at a time.
Starting on March 16, the three Bristow girls had six and a half proscribed hours a day: 9 a.m. classwork; 10 a.m. physical education; 11 a.m., more classwork; noon, lunch; and on and on. The Roth kids joined in a few days later, bringing the student load to six.
Students and parents of “Brothbush Academy” walk from the Bristows’ house to the Furbushes’ for a cooking class during home school in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Then came spring break, and with it, the big decisions.
Gov. Gavin Newsom had put the whole state on lockdown.
Dr. Cameron Kaiser, the Riverside County public health officer, had banned all gatherings of more than 10 people.
And Gabe Roth asked Kristen and her husband Dave if the Furbushes — Will, who is married to Gabe’s sister Samra, and the three Furbush children — could join the collective home school. All of a sudden, there would be 16 people in the quarantine commune, a half-dozen over the limit.
Kristen’s sister-in-law sent her a text: “I guess your whole ‘school thing’ is out the door.”
A few weeks later, Kristen recounted her hopeful response: “But families are not subjected to that.”
Rosie Roth, center, acts out her lines with Carmen Furbush, middle, and Kat Bristow, right, during an improvisational class. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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She was sitting on the Roths’ porch, trying to keep her face mask in place while explaining the intricacies of Brothbush Academy. On the other side of a big front window, Gabe was playing a sequence of notes on a guitar and having the little kids echo it back to him on piano.
“We just decided, who’s to say we’re not family?” Kristen continued. “Not that we wanted to break any rules. But it was so beneficial to all of us, and we’re being so careful.”
Staying in was the order of the day. All groceries were purchased online and delivered. Food was shared. No one outside of the three families and Wayne Gordon, a visitor from Brooklyn who was stranded at the Roths’ for nearly three months, was allowed inside the homes. No grandparents. No friends.
Allison Furbush, left, and Ellie Bristow are seen through a front porch window while teaming up on a science project. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Interviews for this article were conducted from at least six feet away, through masks or on the phone. Neither the reporter nor the photographer set foot in any of the three houses.
“We’re really trying to compensate for the luxury of being together by being extra vigilant in our contact with everybody else,” Gabe said during an interview at his roomy, brown-shingled home.
He was inside the house, the front door closed. The reporter was outside, wearing a mask.
“If there’s a way to do something with less risk or no risk, how much sacrifice is it?” he asked. “Which is why I’m talking with you on the phone.”
::
Students at Brothbush Academy have learned a few things that aren’t in the curriculum at what they call “real school.”
At 9 a.m. on a Thursday in April, Andie Bristow was already at the kitchen table, her head peeking up over her sky-blue laptop. Her hair was tied up in two little buns and she was munching on cantaloupe, clutching her baby doll, ready for school.
At 6 years old, Andie is the youngest Brothbush student, and the start of her school day went something like this:
Andie: What’s today, Mommy?
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Kristen: Today’s Thursday, sweetie.
Andie: Mommy, do I have my [Google] meet now?
Kristen: No, it’s at 9:30. You have half an hour.
Andie: What’s today, Mommy?
Former third-grade teacher Kristen Bristow helps her daughter Andie, 6, with homework. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The Brothbush parents are not fans of distance learning for the youngest students — children such as Sylvester Roth, 8, and Andie, who are still learning the basics — but twice each week, Andie clicks into a live video chat via Google Classroom with her two teachers and 20 or so fellow first-graders at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. The group’s done video scavenger hunts and guessing games and accomplished a little math here and there.
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On this morning, when the meeting time rolled around, Andie had a crackly white plastic bag in her hand and a big smile on her face. She’d picked three friends to guess what’s in her bag, and no one was making any headway.
Top, Veronica Roth teaches yoga during PE in the front yard. Left, David Bristow helps daughter Ellie, 11, shoot a bow-and-arrow. Right, Sylvester Roth does a cannonball while joining his classmates for a swim. (Ginma Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
She laughed and pulled out the mystery object, waving it in front of the webcam so the whole class could see. Ta da! “It’s a marker,” she said, triumphant.
Penelope Roth, 11, and Carmen Furbush, 10, were at the Bristows’ dining room table, heads bent over laptops. Kat Bristow, at 12 one of two middle-schoolers in the bunch, was curled up in an overstuffed chair, typing fast. Her bare feet hung over the chair’s striped arm.
The highlight of every school day starts at 1:30 p.m. Lunch, music, art and silent reading have ended, and the students gather around the Roths’ dining room table. Sometimes there is instruction, but often the students are paired up — a young child with an older one — and given a research assignment that ends in a presentation to the group.
Music producer Gabe Roth teaches rhythm to Allison Furbush while his son Sylvester Roth keeps the beat on the drums during music class. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
They’ve looked into nutrition, reporting on what happens if you have too much or too little of, say, carbohydrates or protein. They’ve researched life in other countries, and what makes people tick, sharing the intricacies of culture and diet.
But on this Thursday afternoon, the group had a special assignment: Each pair of students had to assess the pros and cons of home school and “real school.”
They were unanimous on just a few things, such as the superiority of home school bathrooms and lunches. Their judgments were rendered the old-fashioned way — handwritten on paper or white board.
Allison Furbush, age 7: Something good about real school is there’s nothing good about real school, except my teachers and friends.
Rosie Roth, age 9: The good things about home school is you get to wake up at 8 a.m. instead of 6. And you get to swim in the pool, which is awesome. The bad things are: We. Turn. In. To. Ro. Bots. Stair. Ring. At. Our. Com. Pute. Er. Screens. Too. Much.
Staying safe comes at a cost.
Sylvester Roth, Allison Furbush and Andie Bristow check out their sidewalk chalk design during recess from home school. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
::
The Brothbush Academy doesn’t operate in a bubble. For all the precautions the families have been taking, two factors are out of its control: a teenager who needs to see her mother and an essential worker who must be on the road.
Even without the coronavirus, Will Furbush wages a constant battle against germs when he travels in his Freightliner Cascadia, 76 feet long when a trailer’s attached. He wears gloves to pump diesel and work on the truck. He keeps a 32-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer nearby and wipes down the truck’s interior with Lysol.
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Long-haul trucking is a solitary life; it’s even lonelier with coronavirus restrictions. But when he is not on the road, no money comes in. Truck payments and insurance bills do not go away.
Framed through a shed window, music producer Gabe Roth teaches Kat Bristow and his son Sylvester Roth how to build a raised bed in a gardening class. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
“Looking at the industry, it’s like, you don’t feel like you’re essential,” Will said. “You feel like you’re a slave. You have to go to work. If you don’t, you starve.”
When Will and his daughter Dalina left the Furbushes’ gray shingle house on April 1, they did not know when they would see it again.
Days earlier, at the family meeting in the Roths’ dining room, the adults had agreed on a plan they hoped would keep the families safe without banishing two members of their inner circle.
Will had promised to quarantine himself for 14 days at a cousin’s in Long Beach after each run. Dalina, who during normal times alternates each week between her mom’s house and her dad’s, would stay away for the month of April, at the very least.
“That to me was the hardest,” Gabe said. “Trying to make these decisions about when can you come home and when can you not come home ... and doing this communally.”
Kat Bristow, left, Carmen Furbush and Penelope Roth work on papier-mache masks in art class inside the Roths’ garage. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
On April 8, Will was finishing a run and heading back to Southern California. He planned to be here for five days, but Long Beach and the cousin’s house hadn’t worked out, and there was no backup plan. Samra just knew that she didn’t want her husband sleeping in the truck, so close and yet so far away.
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“I wanted him to come home,” she said. “Him quarantining somewhere else is stupid. I missed him.”
So she set up a conference call. Will was in the Freightliner, driving. The Brothbush Academy adults were in the Bristows’ living room. Samra had planned to connect with Will beforehand so they could figure out how best to persuade the group that he was safe enough to come home between runs.
Rosie Roth, center, takes a breather from typing class seated between Andie Bristow, left, and Allison Furbush at the Bristows’ dining room table. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
But the strategy session never took place.
She dialed Will’s number, put her cellphone on speaker and set it on the coffee table. And Will promised yet again to stay away for 14 days after every trip.
“It all went backwards from the way I wanted it to happen,” Samra recounted. “I was in this weird position. He was going to end up in town for five days. I wanted him to just come home. That was a tense situation.”
On April 10 at 11 p.m., Will called. He said he was already in L.A. County. Samra asked him what he was going to do. He said he didn’t know. The Furbush home was filled with girls, a Brothbush sleepover.
“I said, ‘Come home’,” Samra recounted. “He said, ‘We should talk to everyone.’ ... The next morning at around 8:30, I texted everyone. ‘Will’s in L.A. He’s going to be here a few days. Is it cool if he comes home?’”
She didn’t hear back until early afternoon. By then, the kids were all at the Bristows’, or maybe the Roths’ (if it’s not one, it’s the other). And Will was already home.
“I was a wreck,” Samra said.
“No one said, ‘you’re kicked out of the band,’” Not directly, anyway. But later that weekend, she talked to Gabe.
“He said, ‘We’re all going to go to our houses for a week and regroup,’” she recounted. During that period, the families stayed in their own homes with no face-to face communication. There were no joint classes; the children could not play together; no meals were shared.
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“I felt, ‘Oh, man, I screwed this all up.’”
::
A few days later, Will left again, this time for nearly a month. Classes and harmony resumed at Brothbush Academy.
Will Furbush and his daughter Dalina, 14, arrived home to an empty house, but a welcome home banner greeted them. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
On May 10, he returned to Riverside. He picked up Dalina at her mom’s house, and they headed home. The house was empty. A “Welcome Home” sign hung over the front door. Samra, Allison and Carmen were staying at the Roths’.
Will and Dalina got tested for the virus the next day. If the tests came back negative, the Furbushes would reunite. If not, the father and daughter would quarantine together for two more weeks.
Samra and the Brothbush students walked over later that day to welcome Will and Dalina home and to celebrate Carmen’s 11th birthday. The Furbushes have an old boat parked on a trailer in front of the house, and Will and Dalina had already climbed in. Everyone else stood on the sidewalk. Social distance.
“We purposely stayed in the boat to stay away from them, because otherwise there might’ve been a slip-up,” Will said from his porch swing. Dalina was seated close beside him. Their shoulders touched. They wore protective masks.
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“My youngest is trying to inch closer and closer. And you could see it in her face that she really wants to just ...” Will paused, choked up. He could not finish the sentence. She really wants to just hug me. “That was really tough for me, to try to keep the strength together to not just grab my baby. That’s my baby.”
The test results for Will and Dalina had been promised in 48 to 72 hours.
They actually took a couple of days more.
For the three families — and especially for a stressed and sleepless Samra — it was the longest stretch of the whole pandemic.
The test results arrived on May 15. Negative for both.
Samra texted the next morning: “We are all back home together now.”
Times photographer Gina Ferazzi contributed to this report.


latimes--2020-05-31--L.A. County imposes 6 p.m. curfew as looting hits Santa Monica, Long Beach

Santa Monica was hit by extensive looting and vandalism on Sunday amid large new protests that took place across Southern California .
Los Angeles County imposed a 6 p.m. curfew in hopes of helping control the unrest .
Hundreds of people walked from the Santa Monica Pier north along Ocean Avenue , carrying signs and chanting .
The demonstration decrying the death of George Floyd , a black man who died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck , was peaceful .
The city issued a 4 p.m. curfew and some protesters were in a tense standoff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weapons after some demonstrators threw objects toward them .
Shortly before 2 p.m. , however , dozens of looters stormed Santa Monica Place , smashing windows of Louis Vuitton and several other stores .
They left before police arrived .
Looters also ransacked the Vans at 400 Broadway , stealing shoes and skateboards from the store and storage room .
People carried merchandise past the Promenade as police guarding 3rd Street watched them walk by .
They ran to a nearby alley , found what looked to be the back entrance to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blaring and shouts of “ police !
” the group ran back out of the alley , carrying shoeboxes .
Some of them were picked up by a waiting car .
They rushed to stuff the merchandise inside while police on motorcycles approached .
A couple blocks away , at 7th Street and Broadway , people were seen breaking into a pharmacy , using a skateboard to shatter the window before climbing inside .
Next door , people smashed the window of a jewelry store .
Firefighters at a neighboring station urged residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all off-ramps into Santa Monica from the 10 Freeway and Pacific Coast Highway and told people to avoid the downtown area .
In response to the unrest , Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva announced a countywide curfew beginning at 6 p.m. Sunday and ending at 6 a.m. Monday .
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia also announced a curfew in Long Beach from 8 p.m. Sunday to 5 a.m. Monday .
Paul Cain , owner of The Britannia Pub on Santa Monica Blvd , said he called police early in the afternoon to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was outside .
They told him the protesters were peaceful , marching down Ocean Avenue , and that he had nothing to worry about .
What seemed like moments later , he saw waves of crowds on the street .
He ushered his customers sitting on the patio inside where they watched looters storm the area .
“ The people were outside eating and drinking , and all of a sudden it arrived , ” he said .
“ It happened in waves.
” More than four hours later , the looting throughout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Protesters crashed store windows with hammers and ran in , taking what they could before police arrived .
Store alarms and police sirens sounded throughout the area .
Bystanders and drivers all slowed to watch the destruction , many holding their phones out to document what was happening .
It was a lawless scene , with few obeying approaching sirens or street lights .
Inside the Britannia Pub , every so often Cain would shout and point out the window toward people carrying arm loads of merchandise from the Gap and other stores @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” he said .
“ He must be carrying his body weight in jeans.
” Protests were also underway Sunday afternoon in downtown Los Angeles , where National Guard troops established a perimeter around City Hall , in Long Beach and in Huntington Beach .
In Huntington Beach , police declared a protest near the pier an unlawful assembly about 1 p.m. , said Angela Bennett , public information officer for the Huntington Beach Police Department .
She estimated about 500 people were demonstrating and said there were no reports of violence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officers lining up to face the protesters near Pacific Coast Highway and Main Street .
No arrests had been made , Bennett said .
At the Promenade in downtown Long Beach , business owners were rushing to board up restaurants , clothing stores and galleries .
Police and demonstrators were in a standoff near The Pike Outlets .
Patrol cars were hit with eggs and water bottles as people began rushing police officers .
By 5 p.m. some had started looting shops at the outlet , carrying armfuls of clothing out of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more protests in downtown Los Angeles , including a march to Pershing Square .
Video showed an incident in which a police vehicle hit a protester before speeding away as people threw objects at the car .
The person hit did not appear to be seriously injured .
National Guard troops joined LAPD officers stationed on the steps of City Hall .
Neissa Diabate , 27 , stood nearby holding a sign that read “ America would not exist without the black community ” .
“ It ’ s actually wild that we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ middle of a pandemic , ” she said .
They were there for George Floyd because “ enough is enough , ” she added .
“ America has taught us that peace does not get us far , ” she said .
Meanwhile , on the south side of the Los Angeles Police Department ’ s headquarters a few hundred protesters shouted “ hands up , don ’ t shoot ” at a line of officers and guardsmen as a police helicopter orbited overhead .
Cell phones rang out in the crowd with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ They changed the time .
They changed the curfew ... cowards , ” a woman yelled using an expletive .
Earlier on Sunday , Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti had imposed an overnight curfew for a second night in the wake of the worst unrest in the city in decades , warning millions of residents and would-be protesters that they could be arrested if they ventured outside after 8 p.m. County officials later amended the order to get people inside by 6 p.m .
The curfew is necessary to maintain order after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and tense clashes between police and protesters in the street , Garcetti said .
“ When times demand it , ” the mayor said , “ strong steps are required to bring peace back to our city.
” Saturday ’ s unrest eclipsed that of Friday in downtown Los Angeles .
Violence extended into other parts of the city and left portions of the Grove mall in the Fairfax District ablaze .
Police shot projectiles at protesters in multiple locations .
Protesters threw rocks and other objects , as well as fireworks , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 398 people were arrested Saturday on suspicion of crimes including burglary , looting , vandalism , failure to disperse , and firearms and curfew violations .
Five LAPD officers were injured , with two of them hospitalized , officials said .
The most seriously injured officer was struck by a brick while in the Fairfax area , authorities said , The brick fractured his skull .
Another officer suffered a broken arm , and another suffered a broken leg during the clashes with protesters .
LAPD Chief Michel Moore , appearing with Garcetti @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Sunday , said the officer whose skull was fractured underwent surgery Saturday night .
“ I believe he will survive , ” Moore said .
Garcetti said people who engaged in “ destruction and looting ” were only hurting others in the community .
“ They have not just caused chaos and damage , ” he said .
“ They are hijacking a moment and a movement.
” Saturday ’ s unrest — which undercut a weekend meant to be focused on the the reopening of restaurants , barbershops and hair salons @ @ @ @ @ @ @ spurred other cities to enact overnight curfews .
The cities of Beverly Hills , Santa Monica , West Hollywood , Culver City and Torrance announced curfews for Sunday into Monday , as did the city of Santa Ana in Orange County .
In West Hollywood and Torrance , the curfews will be in effect each night until they are lifted by city officials .
In Beverly Hills , the curfew took effect at 1 p.m. for the business district , which includes Rodeo Drive , and will be in place at 4 p.m. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Violence , looting , and vandalism will not be tolerated in our city , ” Beverly Hills Mayor Lester Friedman said .
“ It ’ s unfortunate that the message of the peaceful protesters has been diminished by criminal behavior.
” At dawn Sunday , five National Guard military Humvees were parked at 3rd and Hill streets in downtown L.A. Guardsmen dressed in full combat gear stood outside shattered storefronts as the morning light revealed the damage from the days before : broken windows , trash-strewn streets and graffiti-tagged buildings .
By @ @ @ @ @ @ @ M-4 rifles marched on patrol along Broadway between 7th and 8th streets .
Gov .
Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in the city and county of Los Angeles shortly before midnight , which was when he activated the National Guard .
Los Angeles County officials also proclaimed a countywide state of emergency to deal with the unrest .
“ This emergency comes as we are in the midst of battling another emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic , ” County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Sunday in a statement .
“ This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resolve.
” The proclamation will help authorities coordinate an emergency response and mutual aid and speed up the procurement of supplies , officials said .
It also provides for future state and federal reimbursement of costs the county incurs .
The dramatic move came after a day of deteriorating conditions .
Demonstrators burned Los Angeles Police Department cruisers and looted retail businesses including the Apple Store and Nordstrom at the Grove .
Some protesters even made it to Beverly Hills ’ famed Rodeo Drive , where they were met by a line of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Garcetti and other city leaders had encouraged peaceful expression and voiced support for the marches .
But on Saturday , the mayor said the conditions on the streets were getting worse by the hour .
First , he ordered a night curfew for downtown L.A. Then , about an hour later , he extended it to the entire city .
Less than an hour after that , he requested the National Guard .
The decision to call in the National Guard was criticized by City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson , who represents a portion @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear that our fear is real that additional law enforcement will only further violence against people of color , ” Harris-Dawson said in a statement .
“ Anarchists are taking advantage of our pain with looting and violence — this is not Black Lives Matter or members of our community who have suffered from systematic racism and oppression — these are domestic terrorists.
” The last time the National Guard patrolled the streets of L.A. was during the 1992 riots , which erupted after the police officers who beat black motorist Rodney King @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those riots , the events in Los Angeles on Saturday were significantly less widespread and dangerous .
The protests and looting were limited Friday night and Saturday morning largely to downtown Los Angeles and on Saturday afternoon and evening to the Fairfax District .
Although officers were hurt when protesters threw objects at them , there have been no fatalities .
The 1992 riots swept across large swaths of Southern California and left more than 60 people dead .
From Friday afternoon to early Saturday , police clashed with protesters across downtown , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and getting into physical altercations .
Despite the curfew imposed by Garcetti that lasted until 5:30 a.m. Sunday , groups of people — mostly men — wandered the streets of downtown Los Angeles late Saturday night , smashing windows and spray-painting anti-police graffiti on plywood boards that business and property owners had hastily affixed to their buildings earlier in the day .
In Saturday ’ s violence near the Grove , police and protesters spent hours in a tense standoff , with officers shooting rubber bullets and striking demonstrators with batons while several @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other vehicles were vandalized .
Protesters also took over a Metro bus and climbed on its roof to take video of police .
Several hours later , the Metropolitan Transportation Authority suspended bus and rail service with little warning .
The agency apologized Sunday morning to passengers who were left stranded across L.A. County .
The unprecedented closure of the Metro system drew immediate criticism from advocates and elected officials who said essential workers were left stranded on sidewalks , at stations and in bus shelters in the hours after the 8 p.m. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cities .
Metro ’ s chief executive Phil Washington told KNX 1070 News Radio on Saturday night that the agency chose to shut down service because he had seen “ a lot of damage , ” and was concerned for the safety of Metro employees .
Washington said Metro supervisors were driving around the city on Saturday night to look for people at bus stops , then calling nearby bus yards and asking them to dispatch vehicles to pick them up .
On Sunday morning , a Metro spokesperson said the agency would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Uber or Lyft after the system shut down .
Anyone seeking a refund should call Metro customer service at ( 323 ) 466-3876 .
The large crowd that moved through the Fairfax District first gathered at Pan Pacific Park off Beverly Boulevard at a rally organized by Black Lives Matter and social justice group BLD PWR , where they chanted , “ Defund police ” and “ Prosecute killer cops.
” The rally ’ s speakers called for less public money for police departments and for schools and prisons to be overhauled .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ middle of an uprising , ” Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors told the group .
“ Let ’ s be clear : We are in an uprising for black life.
” The scene turned more violent as the day wore on .
About a dozen destroyed or defaced LAPD cruisers sat abandoned on 3rd Street , yards from where a loud crowd of protesters faced a row of police .
The odor of charred rubber wafted through the area .
The cruisers ’ windows were smashed , mirrors ripped out and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Protesters spray-painted “ Cops and Klan go hand and hand ” on the side of a Citibank on Fairfax Avenue .
Across the street , “ Eat the Rich ” was scrawled on the Writers Guild of America building .
Around 6 p.m. , police arrested about 20 people , who were then loaded onto a sheriff ’ s bus .
Dozens of protesters — many dressed in black and wearing masks — posed for photographs , each with a fist in the air , while standing atop a burned and graffitied @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
At The Grove nearby , looters broke into the Nordstrom department store and the Apple Store and ran off with merchandise .
As looters approached two security guards outside the Nike store , the guards begged them not to enter .
“ We ’ re one of you , ” one guard said .
Eventually , some set a small police kiosk at the mall on fire .
The police chief was personally leading the operation in the Fairfax District and rushed to the Grove after the looting began .
Moore said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gotten out of control .
He said he understood people ’ s anger and frustration but that the city needed to pull together .
“ This is not the solution , ” he said , standing next to broken glass from the Nordstrom facade .
“ We haven ’ t given up on L.A. , and L.A. shouldn ’ t give up on itself .
We can pull around this .
... Policing doesn ’ t fix these kinds of societal problems .
I need all of L.A. to step up right now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ There appeared to be divisions among the protesters .
When one smashed the front window of a nearby Whole Foods on 3rd Street with a hammer , some screamed , “ Don ’ t do that !
Please !
” while others cheered .
The protesters also began to clash among themselves .
Some who urged peace created a barricade of shopping carts around the store ’ s entrance to protect it , but moments later , another group jumped the barrier and broke down the store ’ s door .
The Spokes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at 6 p.m .
The owner , Joey Harris , saw people breaking windows at Sorella ’ s next door when he left .
“ And that ’ s a black-owned business , ” he said .
“ It obviously wasn ’ t about protests.
” He ’ s had his store here for 20 years .
The store stayed open during the COVID-19 pandemic because it ’ s considered an essential business .
“ They not only took my bikes , they took customer ’ s bikes as well , ” he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ total $ 100,000 .
Travon Walton , a 25-year-old student from Long Beach , arrived in the Fairfax area in the afternoon to join the protests .
He said he saw many non-black protesters inciting the police from up close and said he worried that the black community would receive the blame .
“ All the white people are in the front , ” he said .
“ We ’ re going to be the ones that get the backlash.
” As the night wore on , there were more reports of looting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several stores were ransacked and a Starbucks coffee shop was set ablaze .
“ It ’ s horrible — they need any excuse just to take something , ” said Mel , a 39-year-old Compton resident who would provide only his first name as he watched from across the street .
Mel said he came to the area to witness history .
“ It ’ s going to be in the news , ” he said .
“ It ’ s going to be like the Watts riots .
I wasn ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was alive for this one .
I ’ ll tell my kids and family members what happened.
” What Lindsay Pierce saw on her security cameras Saturday night made her ill .
The Melrose Avenue business owner was monitoring her shop , Wax , by way of security cameras as the protests moved through the Fairfax District .
At about 11 p.m. , she said , three young men darted inside her store after its windows were shattered .
They immediately moved to the business ’ internet router and disconnected it , cutting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I started sweating , I got sick to my stomach , I was just thinking , ‘ Please don ’ t light it on fire , ’ ” Pierce said Sunday morning .
She said she got only about an hour of sleep before she was up at 6 a.m. and headed to the store to survey the damage .
All the business ’ electronics were stolen along with some small merchandise , she said .
Around midnight Saturday , for at least half an hour , a procession of cars , SUVs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Melrose Mac store at 6614 Melrose Ave. and disgorged their drivers and passengers .
With no police in sight , they scrambled empty-handed into the store through shattered windows and emerged moments later with what appeared to be boxes of computers .
The looting was broadcast live on L.A. news outlets .
“ It was like a McDonald ’ s drive-through outside the Mac store , where cars were pulling up and others were throwing in looted goods and driving off , ” Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz told KTLA News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a line , one by one , ” he said .
“ It was something the likes of which I ’ ve never seen anywhere.
” By early Sunday , the chaos was replaced by an eerie quiet .
Around 1 a.m. , a few stragglers remained in the Fairfax District , the center of the prior day ’ s protests and looting .
Fire crews doused storefronts that had smoldered for hours .
Metro buses , flanked by police motorcycle escorts , carried detained people who had zip ties on their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sidewalk and hung from window frames .
Koretz , who represents many of the areas that incurred damage , said business districts along Fairfax Avenue and Melrose Avenue had been “ devastated ” by looting , vandalism and graffiti .
“ This was the weekend that the city had given permission for restaurants and retail to emerge from COVID , ” he said .
“ And instead , businesses that were already hanging by a thread are now destroyed.
” By 8:30 a.m. , a Los Angeles beautification team was out along Melrose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the long task of covering up profanity and other tags left on buildings down the street .
Helicopters flew overhead as the crew worked .
The crew of five had started at 7:30 that morning .
“ We haven ’ t even moved one half block , ” said crew supervisor Ernesto Fabian as he scrubbed graffiti off a window with steel wool .
In the window were paper signs that read , “ Black owned.
” “ They don ’ t respect that , ” he said .
“ They just keep @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work its way down to La Cienega Boulevard .
“ I don ’ t think we can make it today , ” Fabian said .
“ It ’ s going to take a couple of days to clean everything.
” Rodney Beckwith , who goes by his artist name , Flewnt , is the manager of Resist 323 on Melrose , a store selling custom clothing and art that saw one of its windows smashed .
He spent the night inside the store , where a garage door security gate was pulled down @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was inside Saturday night when he heard people trying to break in through the back door .
He shoved a table saw against the security door .
“ All I could do was try to get to the rooftop , ” he said .
“ My survival mode , get high and get out the door .
I ’ m not going to sit down there , they ’ re breaking through a door , they ’ re not knocking.
” “ I know they ’ re black lives matter , I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doing something crazy , ” he said .
“ ...
I feel them , I ’ m with them , but at the same time I ’ m protecting a business.
” No one was able to breach the security door and get inside .
Eli Ventov has had his store , Reloaded L.A. , along Melrose for nearly 12 years .
The store had just reopened Wednesday after being closed because of the pandemic .
On Saturday , as they saw the protests start to grow , workers rushed to Home Depot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ windows so no one would break in .
No one did break in that night .
But in the same building , people broke into the Dr. Martens store .
Around 7 p.m. , someone threw a bottle with gasoline inside the store , Ventov said .
“ It went from this store , to this store , to this store , ” Ventov said of the resulting fire , gesturing to shoe store Tony-K and then to his store .
Ventov stood across the street and watched his clothing and jewelry store @ @ @ @ @ @ @ life running across your face , ” he said .
“ I can ’ t believe it.
” “ I understand where they ’ re coming from , but did you really need to come that way ?
” “ He stayed the whole time .
We saw him on the news across the street watching his building burn down , ” said Ramon Pazos , who works at the store .
“ There ’ s nothing we could do but watch.
” On Sunday morning Ventov stood outside the blackened store , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of collapse and the sky was visible through patches .
He grew teary-eyed as a friend embraced him and told him it would be OK. Ricky Flores swept inside the clothing store Flashback , where a sign out front read “ Now open !
Please wear a mask for entry.
” He and his friend had opened the store four years ago , with help from investors whom they eventually bought out .
A year ago , business was going so well they moved from a smaller space next door to a larger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Friday after being closed since March .
But they closed Saturday because of the protests .
They watched on the news as buildings across the street burned .
When Flores arrived Sunday morning , around 7 a.m. , people were still stealing items from the store , he said .
The alarm was blaring and people had broken the security gate the night before .
“ I thought this was going to be cool , ” Flores said , shaking the broken gate .
“ ...
They got through it easily.
” People @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shoes and clothes .
They even stole the ice cube trays from the freezer .
“ What kind of a sick person takes the ice cube trays out of the freezer ?
” “ It ’ s going to be hard to open back up with all the inventory gone , ” Flores said .
“ If they say it ’ s safe to open back up in two days , it ’ s like , what are we going to sell ?
” In Santa Ana , where protesters and police clashed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a.m. At the intersection of McFadden Avenue and Bristol Street , where many of Saturday ’ s skirmishes took place , the scent of melted plastic lingered in the air .
Broken glass was scattered across the intersection .
One man standing with friends outside a nearby house described the entire episode as “ dumb.
” “ Do you have to loot ?
” he said .
“ You ’ re just making the city look bad.
” The man , who declined to provide his name , said he watched police officers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ threw rocks and other items at officers .
Workers at a Smart and Final on Edinger Avenue were cleaning up broken glass .
A small cardboard sign that lay close by read : “ Make lynching a federal crime.
” Nearby , Julio De La Chica said he had watched demonstrators break windows at the Smart and Final and an O ’ Reilly Auto Store , whose walls were scrawled with anti-police graffiti .
“ I was stunned , ” he said .
“ I ’ ve never really seen anything like that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a cart on Fourth Street in downtown Santa Ana since the early 1990s .
He remembers that when the riots that happened in the wake of the Rodney King verdict nearly 30 years ago , “ no one down here cared.
” But as he prepared some mango with chile before closing up early on Sunday , the Mexican immigrant looked upon a Fourth Street he had never seen : empty .
Boarded up .
And nervous of what was to come .
Small business owners frantically put up plywood on their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The sound of buzzsaws cutting down planks and nail guns fastening wood to concrete peppered the humid air .
The night before , a rally In another part of Santa Ana led to looting and soul-searching in a city long maligned by the rest of Orange county as a dangerous place .
Rodriguez saw footage of the aftermath and didn ’ t like it.
“ I understand why everyone so upset , ” he said .
“ But breaking windows and harming your own community isn ’ t the way.
” He @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mango containers.
“ Let ’ s see what happens in a bit , ” Rodriguez said .
“ You can ’ t be open right now .
Because what ’ s coming might hit everything hard.
” Times staff writers Hailey Branson-Potts , Kim Christensen , Dakota Smith , Laura J. Nelson , David Zahniser , Kevin Baxter , Matthew Ormseth , Leila Miller and Emily Baumgaertner contributed to this report .

Alejandra Reyes-Velarde, Brittny Mejia, Joseph Serna, Ruben Vives, Richard Winton, Kevin Rector, Monte Morin, Alex Wigglesworth, Melissa Etehad, Gustavo Arellano, Hannah Fry

National Guard troops arrived in Santa Monica on Sunday evening and were headed to Long Beach after both cities were hit by extensive looting.
It was a surreal end to a surreal day in Southern California as demonstrators once again gathered en masse in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak to protest the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died last week in police custody after a white Minneapolis police officer pinned him down by his neck for several minutes.
National Guard troops and police officers guarded the barricaded steps of Los Angeles City Hall. Emergency alerts on phones warned Los Angeles County residents of a mandatory overnight curfew.
In Santa Monica, looters spent hours in the city’s upscale business district stealing items and setting several fires. In Long Beach, an outlet mall and some downtown shops were hit as protesters screamed at looters and begged them to stop. Caltrans closed westbound lanes of the 10 Freeway at Bundy Drive to prevent people from coming into Santa Monica. Hundreds were arrested.
Protests in downtown Los Angeles, Huntington Beach, Santa Ana and elsewhere were largely peaceful.
1 / 81 Protesters stand on top of a burned LAPD cruiser. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 2 / 81 Protesters stand on top of a bus stop at the Los Angeles Civic Center to demonstrate for justice Wednesday night. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 3 / 81 Protestors turn on their cell phone flashlights at Los Angeles City Hall at 9 pm on Wednesday as part of a silent protest against the death of George Floyd. (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times) 4 / 81 A protester confronts National Guardsmen as thousands of protesters march down Spring Street in Los Angeles to demonstrate for justice in the George Floyd murder by cop case Wednesday. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 5 / 81 Protesters dance on Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles Wednesday night. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 6 / 81 Thousands of protesters march down Spring Street in Los Angeles Wednesday night to demonstrate for justice in the killing of George Floyd. (Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times) 7 / 81 LAPD Cmdr. Gerald Woodyard takes a knee with protesters and L.A. clergy during a march in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times) 8 / 81 Khalil Mitchell speaks to protesters kneeling near a police line, preaching calm and working to preserve a peaceful protest on Monday. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times) 9 / 81 In Hollywood, hundreds of protesters march Monday against police brutality. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 10 / 81 AJ Lovelace, a director and writer, and others keep potential looters from entering a dry cleaning store as they attempt to march peacefully. “We need peace and we need someone to talk to each other,” he said after the looters fled the scene. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times) 11 / 81 Demonstrators in Riverside retreat as county sheriff’s deputies fire nonlethal rounds on Monday after law enforcement announced an unlawful assembly. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 12 / 81 Protesters in Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 13 / 81 An arrest in Hollywood during a protest Monday. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 14 / 81 A demonstrator, injured while trying to flee the firing of nonlethal rounds, lies on the ground in Riverside. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 15 / 81 An LAPD officer arrests a looting suspect in an alley behind a Hollywood Boulevard store. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 16 / 81 Riverside County deputies advance on demonstrators on Monday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 17 / 81 Fireworks thrown by a protester explode at the feet of Riverside police. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 18 / 81 Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco takes a knee with demonstrators. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) 19 / 81 A watch and jewelry store is looted in Van Nuys on Monday. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 20 / 81 A looting arrest in Van Nuys. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 21 / 81 AJ Lovelace, director and writer, tries to stop looters from breaking into a Walgreens in Hollywood. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 22 / 81 An LAPD officer arrests a suspected looter in an alley behind a Hollywood Boulevard store. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 23 / 81 Police advance on a line of protesters in Hollywood, firing rubber bullets. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 24 / 81 Arrests are made of those out after curfew in Hollywood. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 25 / 81 Protesters in Hollywood. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 26 / 81 A store is looted in Hollywood. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 27 / 81 Protesters in Hollywood. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 28 / 81 People out after curfew are arrested Monday at Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 29 / 81 Arrests in Hollywood. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 30 / 81 Protests in Westwood. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 31 / 81 Volunteers help clean up the mess left by looters in Long Beach. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) 32 / 81 Protest in Hollywood. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 33 / 81 National Guardsmen outside Santa Monica Place. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 34 / 81 Gilbert Haro and sons Richard, 8, and James, 6, help clean up in Santa Monica. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) 35 / 81 Protesters face off with police in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 36 / 81 Santa Monica stores were the target of looting on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 37 / 81 Suspected looters in custody in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 38 / 81 L.A. County sheriff’s deputies in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 39 / 81 Sake House employee Jared Settles can’t bear to watch as the restaurant burns in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 40 / 81 An arrest in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 41 / 81 Broken glass from a looted store covers the sidewalk in Santa Monica. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 42 / 81 Cecelia Rosales, who said she was homeless, walks past a line of police officers in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 43 / 81 A man guards a convenience store in Santa Monica. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 44 / 81 Looting erupted Sunday in Long Beach. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 45 / 81 Police and protesters face off in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 46 / 81 A police officer inspects the damage to a Santa Monica supermarket. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 47 / 81 A protester is treated after being struck by a rubber bullet. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 48 / 81 Looting in Long Beach on Sunday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 49 / 81 Looting in Long Beach. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 50 / 81 A suspected looter in Long Beach. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times) 51 / 81 Smashing windows in Santa Monica. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 52 / 81 An arrest in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 53 / 81 People walk away with surfboards in Santa Monica on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 54 / 81 People rush out of a looted store in Santa Monica. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 55 / 81 Protesters in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) 56 / 81 Cheers for protesters in downtown Los Angeles. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) 57 / 81 City Hall on Sunday. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times) 58 / 81 A shattered storefront on Melrose Avenue on Sunday. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 59 / 81 Smashed windows on La Cienega Boulevard. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times) 60 / 81 Downtown L.A. on Sunday. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 61 / 81 People carry merchandise from a looted store. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 62 / 81 A person carries items from a looted store in the Fairfax District on Saturday. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 63 / 81 A couple of protesters embrace on Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles Saturday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times) 64 / 81 People protest Saturday at Pan Pacific Park. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times) 65 / 81 Protesters gather around a fire in the middle of a downtown L.A. street on Friday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 66 / 81 Police fire percussion rounds to clear protesters from Grand Avenue in in downtown Los Angeles on Friday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 67 / 81 A protester remains defiant after being pushed to the ground by police on Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles on Friday. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 68 / 81 Protesters are arrested by Los Angeles police in front of City Hall on Saturday. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 69 / 81 Protesters block the 110 Freeway. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 70 / 81 Protesters take to the streets Friday in downtown L.A. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 71 / 81 Protesters are escorted off the northbound 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 72 / 81 A protester is escorted off the northbound 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 73 / 81 Protesters climb over a barrier during the May 29 protest in downtown L.A. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) 74 / 81 Protesters block the 110 Freeway northbound and southbound in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 75 / 81 Police officers assume a defensive stance as a protester approaches them on the 110 Freeway on May 29. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) 76 / 81 During a May 29 protest, Los Angeles police patrol the 110 after having moved protesters off the freeway. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) 77 / 81 A protester rides a skateboard on the 110 Freeway. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 78 / 81 Protesters block the 110 Freeway northbound and southbound in downtown Los Angeles. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 79 / 81 A protester confronts LAPD officers on Friday in downtown L.A. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) 80 / 81 A protester lies hurt on the 101 Freeway near downtown Los Angeles on May 27. (Gabriella Angotti-Jones / Los Angeles Times) 81 / 81 An injured man gets up with the help of emergency workers during a protest May 27 in downtown L.A. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
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In Long Beach, hundreds of protesters — many chanting and holding signs reading “No Justice, No Peace” and “Black Lives Matter” — walked at about 3 p.m. from the city’s downtown and through Alamitos Beach as residents stood on sidewalks and balconies, shouting words of support.
But less than two hours later, hundreds of people began looting stores at the Pike Outlets. People smashed windows with hammers and trash can lids. Some protesters yelled for the looters to leave the stores alone. Others shouted, “Let’s hit Nike!” before running toward the athletic store.
Several minutes later, a mob rushed back and stormed into Forever 21, slipping on clothes scattered on the floor. At G by Guess, a man used a hammer to smash the store’s door before another man intervened and asked him to stop. Suddenly, the would-be looters began punching the man.
Chandarley Lim, 28, stood in the middle of the street that runs through the outdoor mall yelling, “Peaceful protest!”
“This is sad, man,” she said of the looting. “This is not a good look. Don’t let the bad examples ruin it for the rest of us.”
Shortly after 6 p.m., Long Beach police declared an unlawful assembly in the area, signaling that arrests would soon follow. About an hour later, police and demonstrators were at a standoff on Broadway and Pine Avenue. At least one protester threw a water bottle at the officers standing along Pine, prompting them to shoot rubber projectiles into the crowd.
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Looting continued into the night, and someone set fire to a men’s clothing business in downtown Long Beach.
A similar scene unfolded in Santa Monica. Hundreds of people walked from the Santa Monica Pier north along Ocean Avenue, carrying signs and chanting. Some protesters were in a tense standoff with police, who were firing non-lethal weapons after some demonstrators threw objects toward them.
A little before 2 p.m., dozens of looters stormed Santa Monica Place, smashing the windows of Louis Vuitton and several other stores. They left before police arrived.
Paul Cain, who owns the Britannia Pub in Santa Monica, said he called police early in the afternoon to ask about safety in the area. They told him the protesters were peaceful and that he had nothing to worry about.
But soon, he saw waves of crowds on the street outside of his business. He ushered his customers sitting on the patio inside, and they watched looters storm the area.
“The people were outside eating and drinking, and all of a sudden it arrived,” he said.
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Looters also ransacked the Vans store at 400 Broadway, stealing shoes and skateboards. People carried merchandise past the Promenade as police guarding 3rd Street watched them. They ran to a nearby alley, found what looked to be the back entrance to a store, and swarmed inside.
Amid sirens blaring and shouts of “police!” the group ran back out of the alley, carrying shoe boxes. Some of them were picked up by a waiting car. They rushed to stuff the merchandise inside while police on motorcycles approached.
A few blocks away, at 7th Street and Broadway, people were seen breaking into a pharmacy, using a skateboard to shatter the window before climbing inside. Next door, people smashed the window of a jewelry store.
At least one sheriff’s patrol car parked outside the civic center was set ablaze. Police shut down all off-ramps into Santa Monica from the 10 Freeway and Pacific Coast Highway and told people to avoid the downtown area.
In response to the protests across the region, Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva announced a countywide curfew beginning at 6 p.m. Sunday and ending at 6 a.m. Monday.
But the looting throughout Santa Monica continued into the evening. Protesters crashed store windows with hammers and ran in, taking what they could before police arrived. Store alarms and police sirens sounded throughout the city.
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Inside the Britannia Pub, Cain periodically shouted and pointed out the window toward people with their arms full of merchandise from the Gap and other stores.
“Take a picture of that,” he said. “He must be carrying his body weight in jeans.”
Protests also took place Sunday afternoon in downtown Los Angeles, including a march from Pershing Square to City Hall. National Guard troops established a perimeter around City Hall, joining officers from the Los Angeles Police Department.
“This is the opportunity for our generation to decide who we want to be as Americans,” Elevn St. James, who organized the protest, said into a megaphone from the steps of City Hall. “I can’t help but think, maybe this is the dream that Dr. King died for.”
At some point, he said, “Peace wins,” and urged the crowd not to escalate the violence.
“We can’t give them any more reason to shoot and kill us,” he said. “No more names.”
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The crowd shouted back: “No more names.”
Neissa Diabate, 27, stood nearby holding a sign that read, “America would not exist without the black community.”
“It’s actually wild that we have to be out here in the middle of a pandemic,” she said. “America has taught us that peace does not get us far.”
At 7:45 p.m., nearly two hours after police warned them that they had violated curfew orders and faced arrests, a few hundred demonstrators departed City Hall and began streaming south on Hill Street. They filed past an empty Grand Central Market, past boarded-up storefronts, past wary security guards who assured them that they, too, had no tolerance for police brutality, and past stone-faced National Guard troops.
When an LAPD helicopter circling overhead turned its beam onto the procession, marchers paused to extend middle fingers to the pilot.
At one point, a marcher flung an M-80 firecracker into a group of police officers stationed at Main and Ninth streets. After it exploded, officers briefly fired rubble projectiles at the marchers, who took off running.
In Huntington Beach, police declared a protest with about 500 people near the pier to be an unlawful assembly about 1 p.m. The crowd shrunk considerably, but police fired pepper balls at some demonstrators who did not disperse, according to reports from the scene.
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There were no reports of vandalism, but several people were arrested, said Angela Bennett, public information officer for the Huntington Beach Police Department.
Sunday’s demonstrations capped a weekend of violent protests in Southern California, with numerous buildings, including in the upscale Grove shopping center in the Fairfax District, being set on fire.
Los Angeles police said 398 people were arrested Saturday on suspicion of crimes including burglary, looting, vandalism, failure to disperse, and firearms and curfew violations. Five LAPD officers were injured, with two of them hospitalized, officials said.
The most seriously injured officer was struck by a brick in the Fairfax area and suffered a fractured skull, authorities said. An officer also suffered a broken arm, and another’s leg was broken during clashes with protesters.
LAPD Chief Michel Moore said the officer whose skull was fractured underwent surgery Saturday night. “I believe he will survive,” he said at a Sunday news conference.
The unrest — which undercut a weekend meant to be focused on the the reopening of restaurants, barbershops and hair salons that had been shuttered due to the coronavirus outbreak — spurred cities across the region to enact overnight curfews.
The cities of Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, West Hollywood, Culver City, El Segundo and Torrance announced curfews for Sunday into Monday, as did the city of Santa Ana in Orange County.
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In West Hollywood and Torrance, the curfews will be in effect each night until they are lifted by city officials. In Beverly Hills, the curfew took effect at 1 p.m. for the business district, which includes Rodeo Drive, and at 4 p.m. for the rest of the city.
“Violence, looting, and vandalism will not be tolerated in our city,” Beverly Hills Mayor Lester Friedman said. “It’s unfortunate that the message of the peaceful protesters has been diminished by criminal behavior.”
On Sunday, National Guard troops in full combat gear stood outside shattered storefronts in downtown L.A. as the morning light revealed damage from the days before: broken windows, trash-strewn streets and graffiti-tagged buildings.
By 7 a.m., scores of Guardsmen toting M-4 rifles marched on patrol along Broadway between 7th and 8th streets.
National Guardsmen patrol downtown Los Angeles on Sunday morning. (Monte Morin / Los Angeles Times)
Gov. Gavin Newsom had declared a state of emergency in the city and county of Los Angeles shortly before midnight.
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Los Angeles County officials also proclaimed a countywide state of emergency to deal with the unrest.
“This emergency comes as we are in the midst of battling another emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Sunday in a statement. “This taxes our resources, but not our resolve.”
The proclamation will help authorities coordinate an emergency response and mutual aid and speed up the procurement of supplies, officials said. It also provides for future state and federal reimbursement of costs the county incurs.
The decision to call in the National Guard was criticized by City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson, who represents a portion of South L.A.
“It’s clear that our fear is real that additional law enforcement will only further violence against people of color,” Harris-Dawson said in a statement. “Anarchists are taking advantage of our pain with looting and violence — this is not Black Lives Matter or members of our community who have suffered from systematic racism and oppression — these are domestic terrorists.”
The last time the National Guard patrolled the streets of L.A. was during the 1992 riots, which erupted after the police officers who beat black motorist Rodney King were found not guilty in a jury trial.
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Compared with those riots, the events in Los Angeles over the weekend were significantly less widespread and less dangerous.
Although officers were hurt when protesters threw objects at them, there have been no fatalities. The 1992 riots swept across large swaths of Southern California and left more than 60 people dead.
On Sunday, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority apologized to passengers who were left stranded across L.A. County when bus and rail service was suspended Saturday with little warning.
The unprecedented closure of the Metro system drew immediate criticism from advocates and elected officials who said essential workers were left stranded on sidewalks, at stations and in bus shelters in the hours after the 8 p.m. curfews imposed in Los Angeles and other cities.
Metro’s chief executive Phil Washington told KNX 1070 News Radio that the agency chose to shut down service because he had seen “a lot of damage,” and was concerned for the safety of Metro employees.
Washington said Metro supervisors were driving around the city on Saturday night to look for people at bus stops, then calling nearby bus yards and asking them to dispatch vehicles to pick them up.
On Sunday morning, a Metro spokesperson said the agency would reimburse trips taken in a taxi, Uber or Lyft after the system shut down. Anyone seeking a refund should call Metro customer service at (323) 466-3876.
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Protesters are thrown out of a Whole Foods Market in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles on Saturday. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times)
Lindsay Pierce was operating on only about an hour of sleep when she headed to Melrose Avenue on Sunday morning to survey the damage to her business. What she had seen on her security cameras Saturday night had made her ill.
The Melrose Avenue business owner had been monitoring her shop, Wax, via security cameras as the protests moved through the Fairfax district. At about 11 p.m., she said, three young men darted inside her store after its windows were shattered. They immediately moved to the business’ internet router and disconnected it, cutting off Pierce’s connection.
“I started sweating, I got sick to my stomach, I was just thinking, ‘Please don’t light it on fire,’” Pierce said Sunday morning.
Her survey revealed that all the business’ electronics were stolen, along with some small merchandise.
L.A. City Councilman Paul Koretz, who represents many of the areas that incurred damage, said business districts along Fairfax Avenue and Melrose Avenue had been “devastated” by looting, vandalism and graffiti.
“This was the weekend that the city had given permission for restaurants and retail to emerge from COVID,” he said. “And instead, businesses that were already hanging by a thread are now destroyed.”
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Rodney Beckwith, who goes by his artist name, Flewnt, is the manager of Resist 323 on Melrose, a store selling custom clothing and art that had one of its windows smashed. He spent the night inside the store, where a garage door security gate was pulled down in front to protect it.
Beckwith was inside Saturday night when he heard people trying to break in through the back door. He shoved a table saw against the security door.
“All I could do was try to get to the rooftop,” he said. “My survival mode, get high and get out the door. I’m not going to sit down there, they’re breaking through a door, they’re not knocking.”
“I know they’re black lives matter, I’m black but ... they’re doing something crazy,” he said. “... I feel them, I’m with them, but at the same time I’m protecting a business.”
No one was able to breach the security door and get inside.
Eli Ventov has had his store, Reloaded L.A., along Melrose for nearly 12 years. The clothing and jewelry store had just reopened Wednesday after being closed because of the pandemic. On Saturday, as they saw the protests start to grow, workers rushed to Home Depot and got painters paper to cover the windows so no one would break in.
No one did. But in the same building, people broke into the Dr. Martens store. Around 7 p.m., someone threw a bottle with gasoline inside, Ventov said. A fire erupted.
“It went from this store, to this store, to this store,” Ventov said, gesturing to shoe store Tony-K and then to his store.
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Ventov stood across the street and watched his business burn.
On Sunday morning, he stood outside the blackened store, where the roof appeared on the verge of collapse and the sky was visible through patches. He grew teary-eyed as a friend embraced him and told him it would be OK.
“I understand where they’re coming from,” Ventov said of the protesters, “but did you really need to come that way?”
Ricky Flores swept inside the clothing store Flashback, where a sign out front read “Now open! Please wear a mask for entry.”
He and his friend had opened the store four years ago, and business was going so well they moved from a smaller space next door to a larger one.
The store had just reopened Friday after being closed since March. But they closed Saturday because of the protests. They watched on the news as buildings across the street burned.
When Flores arrived Sunday morning, around 7 a.m., people were still stealing items from the store, he said. The alarm was blaring and people had broken the security gate the night before. People stole three televisions off the wall, shoes and clothes. They even stole the ice cube trays from the freezer.
“What kind of a sick person takes the ice cube trays out of the freezer?”
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Times staff writers Richard Winton, Kevin Rector, Monte Morin, Gustavo Arellano, Alex Wigglesworth, Andrew Campa, Hannah Fry, Kim Christensen, Dakota Smith, Laura J. Nelson, David Zahniser, Kevin Baxter, Leila Miller and Emily Baumgaertner contributed to this report.