An Ontario father, who is a United States citizen, was shot by agents with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after he sarcastically warned them about students gathering at a bus stop.
The incident happened when the victim, identified as Carlos Jimenez, was leaving his home to work at a food bank on Thursday morning. He pulled over and warned a group of federal agents who were in the middle of an apparent traffic stop.
Father Shot by ICE Agents
Jimenez reportedly warned the ICE agents that they should wrap up their stop quickly because school-age children were about to gather to take the bus. Shortly after that, attorneys representing the victim said that one ICE officer shot their client from behind.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Tricia McLaughlin, said that at the time, Jimenez had "attempted to run officers over by reversing directly at them without stopping," adding that the shots that were fired were "defensive," according to the Los Angeles Times.
The 25-year-old father of three has now been charged in federal court with assault on a federal officer, and a judge released him on bond on Friday. Despite the government's claims, lawyers for Jimenez offered a counter-narrative.
They said that their client reversed his vehicle because he was afraid, which was when he was unnecessarily shot in the back of his right shoulder, where the bullet remains lodged. Attorney Robert Simon added that the ICE agents' actions were "unreasonably aggressive" and were a violation of their own policies.
Warning the Officers
Jimenez allegedly approached the officers to tell them that "there's kids that are coming out to wait for the bus." Lawyer Cynthia Santiago said, "He was telling them, 'Excuse me. Can you guys please, you know, please wrap this up.' And immediately, the masked agent pulls out a gun and exchanges some words," Yahoo News reported.
Santiago said that Jimenez was in fear and was trying to get out of the situation, as the ICE agents had blocked on southern lane on Vineyard Avenue with their vehicles. Simon noted that the victim was forced to reverse in order to get away from the scene.
After he was shot, Jimenez went home to tell his family that he had been shot, prompting his wife to take him to the hospital to be treated. Santiago said that their client was not fleeing as he called 911 on his way to the hospital to seek medical assistance, as per LA Taco.
