ICE agents tackle and injure U.S. citizen student with disabilities, local officials say – Los Angeles Times

ICE agents tackle and injure U.S. citizen student with disabilities, local officials say  Los Angeles Times

Federal immigration agents violently detained a 20-year-old U.S. citizen and Santa Maria (Calif.) High School student with special needs on Wednesday morning, according to school and city officials. The student, who has limited verbal communication and is on an individualized education program, was walking to school around 7 a.m. when two agents tackled him from behind, questioned him about his citizenship and restrained him in their vehicle. He was eventually released in the area where he was picked up and walked to school, where officials called for an ambulance to take him to the hospital, said Santa Maria City Councilmember Gloria Soto. The student underwent surgery for injuries to his wrist, she said, and was left with bruises and lacerations.

Soto said a school resource officer obtained security footage from a nearby grocery store and confirmed that the people who had detained the student are agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In an emailed statement, an unidentified ICE spokesperson wrote that agents were conducting a targeted enforcement operation in Santa Maria "when they encountered an individual they believed matched the description of the criminal illegal alien target." "When the individual resisted officers, refused lawful commands, and assumed a fighting stance with clenched fists, they relied on their training to safely control the situation until they could confirm his identity,