A U.S. citizen who was arrested by federal immigration agents and jailed for days before authorities dropped the case against him said he has been looking over his shoulder ever since he was taken into custody in June.
The federal case against Javier Ramirez was dismissed without prejudice last month, a temporary dismissal that would allow prosecutors to refile the same charges. The Montebello man was accused of attempting to run toward agents, citing one agent and resisting arrest when immigration authorities surrounded the area June 12 near a tow yard where he works.
Ramirez said he told the agents he is a U.S. citizen, but that he was soon taken into custody and transported from the tow yard in an unmarked car. Video of his detention was widely shared on social media.
“As long as you look Mexican, they would come up to you and they just take you up,” Ramirez said. “As soon as I see them, the first thing I do is pull up my hands. ‘Hey, I’m not a threat to you.’ They still went at me.”
Ramirez’s family located him in federal custody about 22 hours later. Four days after that, he had a federal court appearance.
“I’m pretty much traumatized by everything,” Ramirez said. “To be honest, I still feel a little bit scared.”
Ramirez, a father of four, showed NBCLA security camera video that shows him walking toward federal agents and raising his hands. His attorneys said they do not yet want to release the video, pending potential litigation.
NBCLA reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for comment on Ramirez’s case. NBCLA reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on Ramirez’s allegations.
The recent immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles and other parts of Southern California are part of President Trump’s campaign promise to carry out a mass deportation plan. The administration has highlighted arrests involving undocumented individuals with violent crime convictions. Those who have been caught up in the nationwide raids include asylum seekers, people who overstayed their visas and migrants awaiting their day in immigration court.
Through Aug. 1, nearly 56,600 migrants had been taken into ICE detention since the start of President Trump’s second term, according NBC News, which used ICE data both public and internal as well as data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. About 29% of those in detention had criminal convictions; 24.7% had pending criminal charges; 46.8% were listed as “other immigration violator;” and 11.9% were fast-tracked for deportation.
Earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling to maintain the temporary restraining order, granted by a federal judge, over how the federal government conducts immigration enforcement operations in Southern California.
Source: NBC Los Angeles