Millions of dollars earmarked for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D-CA) wildfire relief fund, which was meant to help victims of the January 2025 fires recover from the devastation, went instead toward unrelated expenses, including more than $14 million diverted to controlling crowds during California’s anti-deportation protests the following summer.According to California Department of Finance records, $12.8 million of the Los Angeles wildfire response and recovery funds were used to pay for the deployment of California Highway Patrol officers sent to police demonstrations against Immigration and Customs Enforcement in downtown LA last year.“These activities included traffic control, tactical alert, and monitoring of demonstrations to ensure safety of the public and assist other government agencies,” according to a cost breakdown disclosed in the latest report of the fund’s disbursements.
The expenditure report shows that the state spent another $1.5 million of fund allocations on service contracts with the California governor’s Office of Emergency Services “to aid and support local law enforcement amidst nationwide demonstrations.”
Los Angeles was the epicenter of a wave of anti-ICE demonstrations in June 2025, when the Trump administration launched raids targeting illegal immigrants living in and around the city. The demonstrations, some of which turned violent, resulted in hundreds of arrests, as organized groups overwhelmed local law enforcement on a near-nightly basis.
