Bill Essayli, the first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, takes questions during a news conference. Top Los Angeles federal prosecutor Bill Essayli faced blistering criticism from gun rights groups, including the NRA, after he posted on X Saturday about the fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen in Minneapolis by federal immigration officers. “My comment addressed agitators approaching law enforcement with a gun and refusing to disarm. Federal agents are not ‘highly likely’ to be ‘legally justified’ in ‘shooting’ concealed carry licensees who approach while lawfully carrying a firearm,” the group posted on X. Essayli, a former Riverside County assemblyman, was appointed as the region’s interim top federal prosecutor by U.S. Atty.

Source: Los Angeles Times January 25, 2026 03:49 UTC