A lawsuit was filed against President Donald Trump’s administration claiming masked agents have been targeting “individuals with brown skin” in Southern California, arresting them without probable cause and keeping them in “dungeon-like” conditions in efforts to deport them.
The claim, filed in the Central District of California on Wednesday, attempts to block the administration’s “ongoing pattern and practice of flouting the Constitution and federal law.” The lawsuit looks to stop “indiscriminate immigration operations flooding street corners, bus stops, parking lots, agricultural sites, day laborer corners, and other places…”
“Since June 6th, marauding, masked goons have descended upon Los Angeles, terrorizing our brown communities and tearing up the Constitution in the process,” Mohammad Tajsar, ACLU Southern California attorney who is representing the plaintiffs, said in a statement.
An ICE agent monitors hundreds of asylum seekers being processed upon entering the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building on June 6, 2023 in New York City.
David Dee Delgado/Getty Images
“No matter their status or the color of their skin, everyone is guaranteed Constitutional rights to protect them from illegal stops. We will hold DHS accountable.”
Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told ABC News in a statement that allegations claiming law enforcement have targeted individuals because of their skin color are not true.
“Any claims that individuals have been ‘targeted’ by law enforcement because of their skin color are disgusting and categorically FALSE,” McLaughlin said. “These type of smears are designed to demonize and villainize our brave ICE law enforcement.”
A major complaint in the lawsuit alleges that detainees are being kept in substandard confinement facilities that are detrimental to their overall health.
“Members of the Southern California community have been whisked away and disappeared into a grossly overcrowded dungeon-like facility lacking food, medical care, basic hygiene, and beds,” Mark Rosenbaum, a Public Counsel attorney who is representing the plaintiffs, said in a statement on Wednesday. “The objective of this draconian crackdown is to eviscerate basic rights to due process and to shield from public view the horrifying ways ICE and Border Patrol agents treat citizens and residents who have been stigmatized by our government as violent criminals based on skin color alone.”
McLaughlin told ABC News on Wednesday that the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers have higher standards than most United States prisons and those in detention are receiving adequate meals and health care.
“All detainees are provided with proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members,” McLaughlin said in a statement on Wednesday.
“This includes medical, dental, and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility, and access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. This is the best healthcare that many aliens have received in their entire lives. Meals are certified by dieticians. Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE.”
The Southern California raids have led to the detention of more than 1,500 people, according to the plaintiffs’ attorneys. They claim that federal agents consistently refuse to identify themselves or what agency they are with when asked, using anonymity as a tactic to shield alleged lawlessness.
“In these interactions, agents typically have no prior information about the individual and no warrant of any kind,” according to the lawsuit. “If agents make an arrest, contrary to federal law, they do not make any determination of whether a person poses a risk of flight before a warrant can be obtained. Also contrary to federal law, the agents do not identify themselves or explain why the individual is being arrested.”
