The Brief
- Federal and local law enforcement arrested 18 people and seized drugs in a sweeping operation targeting an alleged open-air drug market at MacArthur Park.
- Some local business owners praised the crackdown but criticized city leaders and called for an end to needle and pipe distribution programs.
- City officials defended public health efforts, emphasizing addiction treatment and long-term solutions while disputing claims about the programs.
LOS ANGELES – Reaction is pouring in, 24 hours after federal and local law enforcement agencies carried out a sweeping drug operation called “Free MacArthur Park.” Eighteen people were arrested, and a large amount of drugs was recovered in the latest effort to deal with what prosecutors and quite a few locals describe as an open-air drug market operating in the park and surrounding area.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli says the operation was designed to “liberate the park from an open-air drug market that’s proliferated here for too long.”
“You better do this every week,” said locals, like the owners of Langer’s Deli. …