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Protests Over High-Pitch Devices at L.A. Home Depot Intensify as Company Denies Targeting Day Laborers

Home Depot says the equipment addresses illegal overnight parking near a Caltrans overpass.

Overview

  • Immigrant advocates and day laborers allege three sound-emitting boxes were installed at the Cypress Park store after a recent enforcement sweep and say the noise causes headaches, nausea, and dizziness.
  • Los Angeles Councilwoman Eunisses Hernandez condemned the technology as the weaponization of sound and questioned its placement on land tied to the state transportation agency.
  • Home Depot calls the allegations categorically false, describes the site as a unique location with localized technology and K‑gates, and says the measures are for safety and to deter overnight parking.
  • The company denies coordinating with immigration authorities, while IDEPSCA reports roughly 50 detentions at the location this year.
  • Observers reported conflicting on‑scene findings, including claims the devices were switched off during a press event and later reactivated, while ABC7 and FOX 11 crews said they could not hear the noise during their visits.