In a controversial move, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have recently arrested U.S. citizens during protests, marking a significant shift in the agency’s approach.
While at least 38 U.S. citizen protesters have been detained in Los Angeles this year, the recent arrests in San Francisco appear to represent the first instance of ICE detaining citizens in that city, according to Bay Area immigration lawyers.
Aliya Karmali, an immigration attorney based in Oakland and a member of the Demonstrations Legal Support Collaborative, stated, “I haven’t seen ICE arresting U.S. citizen protesters in the Bay since entering the legal field nearly 20 years ago.”
On a Friday afternoon, ICE agents made headlines by tackling and detaining two U.S. citizen protesters outside the agency’s San Francisco field office located at 630 Sansome St.
Karmali raised concerns regarding ICE’s history of racial profiling. She noted that the agency has been known to detain individuals who may lack documentation, suggesting that U.S. citizens are no longer exempt from ICE’s actions. Karmali expressed worry that ICE appears to be expanding its authority over all citizens, using arrests for federal crimes both in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Despite these arrests, legal accountability remains. Even if ICE detains a person, proving a federal crime requires a trial. Reporting from the Los Angeles Times indicates that of the 38 individuals charged by ICE in Los Angeles, only seven have successfully been indicted. Three others reached plea deals, while a significant number had their charges either reduced or dismissed, often due to false statements made by Department of Homeland Security officers regarding their arrests.
The 18% success rate in prosecutions in Los Angeles starkly contrasts with the typical federal prosecution success rate of around 90%, where the majority of defendants plead guilty or are convicted during trial.
Jennifer Friedman, interim director of the Immigration Unit at the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office, criticized this trend, describing it as a potentially unlawful directive from President Donald Trump aimed at arresting protesters. Friedman deemed such arrests of U.S. citizens as an alarming overreach of civil immigration enforcement authority that she considers unprecedented.
Legally, ICE’s ability to arrest citizens is complex. While one policy prohibits ICE from asserting civil immigration enforcement authority to detain U.S. citizens, another provision empowers immigration officers to arrest any person for any felony cognizable under U.S. law, given they possess reasonable grounds to believe a felony has occurred.
Consequently, while ICE agents cannot arrest citizens strictly for immigration violations, they reportedly have the legal right to apprehend citizens for alleged federal crimes if they have sufficient evidence.
However, a limitation exists—ICE officers must complete training specifically addressing how to conduct such arrests. This poses a challenge, as many ICE agents conceal their identities, making it virtually impossible to verify their training credentials.
One notable example of this occurred recently when U.S. citizen Amanda Trebach was taken into federal custody outside Terminal Island, a military base being utilized by ICE for operational planning. Trebach was released the following day without any charges, largely due to the widespread protest supporting her freedom.
Hours after Trebach’s detention, ICE acted again, arresting two protesters in San Francisco. Footage shared by Mission Local captures the events during which a woman in her 50s and a taller man were tackled by ICE agents. One of the individuals involved reported sustaining bruises on their ribs and wrists.
San Francisco police, who previously detained over 200 anti-ICE protesters in a June event, and the Federal Protective Services, often described as “Homeland Security’s Domestic Police Force,” were also present at the scene earlier that day. However, it was ICE agents wearing identifiable uniforms who executed the arrest.
After their initial detention, the protesters were held in separate holding cells within the federal building for about two and a half hours, during which they had their personal possessions confiscated. Upon their release, they were issued several citations, including charges of interfering with public duties—an allegation common against many individuals detained by ICE in Los Angeles.
The precise nature of the San Francisco protesters’ situation remains unclear. It is yet to be determined whether they were officially arrested and booked, as the decision to pursue charges will be made by the Northern District of California’s U.S. Attorney. The timeline for this outcome could extend for weeks or may conclude without any charges being filed.
Requests for comments from ICE and the Department of Homeland Security have gone unanswered as the situation develops.
image source from：missionlocal
