Medaria Arradondo, the former Minneapolis police chief who led the department during the George Floyd case and testified against Derek Chauvin in 2021, now serves as a law enforcement analyst on CNN.
On CNN, Arradondo said:
“I think that certainly chiefs in major cities are looking at the manner in which Chief McDonnell is handling this in Los Angeles, which is unprecedented in terms of the federalized National Guard coming in as well as having Marines deployed to that area. Major city chiefs are absolutely going to be communicating because this is probably going to be — not probably — this will be sort of the normal, I imagine, over the course of this year…”
The claim that the deployment of federalized National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles in June 2025 is “unprecedented” is incorrect. Historical precedents clearly show that similar combinations of federalized National Guard and federal military forces — both with and without state approval — have been used before, with local police departments actively coordinating.
Historical Precedents for Federal Troop and Guard Deployments
🔹1992 Los Angeles Riots (With State Approval & With Police Coordination)
Why Not Unprecedented: President George H.W. Bush deployed 3,000-4,000 active-duty troops (Army and Marines), some 6,000 National Guard troops, and 1,000 riot-trained federal law officers in response to riots after the Rodney King verdict. California Governor Pete Wilson formally requested the deployment. LAPD Chief Daryl Gates coordinated with these federal forces to restore order in the city.
Source: https://www.britannica.com/event/Los-Angeles-Riots-of-1992
Parallels to 2025: Like 1992, 2025 saw federalized Guard and Marines deployed to LA, with Chief McDonnell coordinating with federal entities — a direct echo of Gates’ leadership.
🔹1957–1958 Little Rock, Arkansas (Without State Approval & With Police Coordination)
Why Not Unprecedented: In 1957, President Eisenhower invoked Title 10 to federalize the Arkansas National Guard and deployed the 101st Airborne to enforce school desegregation, overruling Governor Orval Faubus.
Source: https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/executive-order-10730
Police Coordination: The Little Rock Police initially escorted the Little Rock Nine. As tensions escalated, Mayor Woodrow Mann formally requested federal help, showing that local law enforcement supported and coordinated with federal forces.
Source: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/central-high-school-integrated
Parallels to 2025: Federalized National Guard and federal troops worked in cooperation with local law enforcement — a precedent mirrored in modern Los Angeles.
🔹1965 Selma, Alabama (Without State Approval & With Police Coordination)
Why Not Unprecedented: Following “Bloody Sunday” on March 7, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson federalized 1,900 members of the Alabama National Guard and deployed 2,000 U.S. Army troops to protect the Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march (March 21–25, 1965). This action was taken without the consent of Alabama Governor George Wallace, who opposed the march and refused to provide state protection.
Sources:
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/lbj-sends-federal-troops-to-alabama
Parallels to 2025: The coordination between federal troops, federalized National Guard, and local police in Selma in 1965 mirrors joint efforts in Los Angeles in 2025, challenging claims of unprecedented federal action.
🔹1967 Detroit Riots (With State Approval & With Police Coordination)
Why Not Unprecedented: President Johnson sent 4,700 federal troops and federalized the Michigan National Guard during the 1967 Detroit riots, at the request of Governor George Romney.
Source: Kerner Commission report: https://www.eisenhowerfoundation.org/docs/kerner.pdf
Police Coordination: Detroit police worked directly with National Guard and Army troops, as detailed in post-riot analysis. The report describes joint operations between local law enforcement and federal entities.
Parallels to 2025: Like McDonnell’s LAPD in 2025, Detroit law enforcement functioned side-by-side with federal forces in a crisis.
🔹Legal Authority: Title 10, Section 12406
Why It’s Not Unprecedented: President Trump invoked Title 10, Section 12406 to federalize the California National Guard in 2025 during protests over immigration enforcement. This statute authorizes federalization when states cannot maintain public order or in cases of “rebellion.” Other presidents, such as Eisenhower in 1957 to enforce desegregation in Little Rock and Nixon in 1970 during the Postal Service Strike, used Title 10 or similar authorities to federalize the Guard, aligning Trump’s action with historical precedent.
Legal authority: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/10/12406
Contrary to Arradondo’s claim, Trump’s 2025 federalization of the California National Guard and deployment of Marines follows precedents set by Bush (1992), Johnson (1965, 1967), and Eisenhower (1957). Bush’s 1992 deployment notably included both federalized National Guard troops and active-duty Marines working alongside local police to restore order during the Los Angeles riots, directly paralleling the 2025 situation. While some earlier deployments did not specifically involve Marines, all involved coordinated efforts between federalized Guard, federal military forces, and local law enforcement. These examples demonstrate that such combined federal actions are consistent with historical practice and are not unprecedented.