Crackdown on migrants in Los Angeles spurs law requiring agents to identify themselves

Los Ángeles (EE.UU.).- The possible use of excessive force in arrests of migrants, such as the case of a gardener beaten against the floor by masked and unidentified agents in Los Angeles, has driven a bill in California that would require immigration agents to show their badge and give their name in operations.

The operations of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) that began their third consecutive week in the metropolitan area of Los Angeles have left a wave of fear and confusion among the Hispanic community, which complains of the use of violent tactics by federal agents whom they cannot report because they do not know their identity. This is the case of Narciso Barranco, arrested last Saturday in the city of Santa Ana (California), when several agents with covered faces knocked him to the ground, where they sprayed him with pepper spray, beat him, and dislocated his shoulder.

The Controversial Case of the Migrant Gardener in Los Angeles

The video of the gardener's arrest went viral and fueled criticism for the apparent use of excessive force to detain the 48-year-old man, father of three U.S. citizens who have served in the U.S. Army, two of them currently on active duty in the Marine Corps. "I don't think it was fair, I don't think it was equitable," said Alejandro Barranco, son of the detained migrant, to the Los Angeles Times. "I don't think they need four guys over 200 pounds to hold down a 150-pound person," he elaborated. The images of the arrest caused such an uproar that this Monday the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) itself, which oversees ICE, shared the video on its X account, assuring that the agents reacted with force because they were defending themselves from Barranco, who had a pruning shear in his hands with which he was working. However, witnesses said that the gardener had been frightened when he saw himself surrounded by the masked men and ran away with the tool in his hands and did not attempt to hit the agents at any time.

Lying on the floor

A similar scene was captured on June 19 when Matilde, a migrant tamale vendor whose last name has not been revealed, collapsed on the ground when confronted by a countless number of immigration agents in the Pacoima area, in the north of Los Angeles. A video showed the woman passed out in a parking lot and the officers guarding her without helping her. It is not until a good Samaritan confronts them and calls the emergency service to seek medical attention.

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A witness reported on social media that the officers tried to drag the unconscious woman towards an unmarked vehicle, hitting her body, and how they couldn't lift her, they left her lying on the spot.

Without "watchmen"

The general consensus of elected officials and activists is that agents with covered faces and without identification are sowing fear in the communities and distrust towards the authorities, which is why the approval of a law is necessary. State Senator Sasha Renée Pérez said at a press conference in Los Angeles that the legislation seeks to establish clear and consistent standards, requiring officers to identify themselves during law enforcement actions. It would also prevent bounty hunters from making immigration arrests.