Seattle Police Chief Barnes says he expects to be jailed for resisting Trump's orders

Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes told City Council members Tuesday that he plans to stand up for the First Amendment rights of Seattle residents and expects to be jailed at some point for making that stand.

“I will do everything in my power to protect anyone in Seattle from anyone who comes to this city with the intention to hurt them or inhibit their First Amendment rights,” Barnes told Council members during a Public Safety Committee meeting that is part of his confirmation process. “What that means is at some point I will probably go to jail and be in prison because we have an administration that has threatened to jail politicians… and has threatened to jail a governor.”

Barnes was responding to a question about the federal response to protests in Los Angeles over the weekend. President Donald Trump called up National Guard troops and deployed Marines to quell protests in response federal immigration raids, despite the objection of California Governor Gavin Newsom.

Trump suggested Monday that Newsom should be arrested over his handling of the L.A. protests, a threat initially made by Trump's border czar, Tom Homan.

RELATED: 4 things to know about the immigration raid protests that roiled LA this weekend

“The federal government’s decision to bring in the military — and I was a Marine — is not warranted,” Barnes said.

On Tuesday morning, protests erupted in Seattle in response to the unrest in Los Angeles. About 40 people gathered outside the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building downtown and chanted anti-ICE slogans in English and Spanish. A few people clashed with police and attempted to block vehicle access to the building.

RELATED: Seattle protesters block ICE vans from leaving immigration court

Tuesday’s protest followed a larger protest Monday in which about 300 people marched to Seattle City Hall to show their opposition to the arrest of a union leader during the L.A. protests.

Barnes said cities like L.A. and Seattle have experience dealing with demonstrations and know how to keep them peaceful and contained.

“I can assure you, they can handle it, just like if there are protests in Seattle, we can handle it,” he said. “We’re not new to this.”

RELATED: Could Trump mobilize Washington state's National Guard if immigration raid protests break out?

Barnes called himself a “student of history” and said he plans to uphold the Constitution, and the rights of Americans that a lot of people have fought and died to protect.

“I’m going to do the right thing for the people of Seattle,” Barnes said. “I would hope that’s your expectation of me and I hope you will hold me accountable to that.”

Barnes, who has been on the job for three months, is expected to be confirmed as the city's permanent police chief as soon as next week.