San Diego’s Democratic congressional representatives gathered Tuesday to call on Congress to pass legislation reining in Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) following the fatal shootings of American citizens in Minnesota earlier this month.
Outside the federal courthouse in downtown San Diego, the lawmakers said the shootings of Renée Nicole Good and Alex Pretti demonstrated the urgent need.
“Neither should be dead today,” said Rep. Scott Peters, D-CA 50.
Peters accused federal immigration officers of wreaking chaos in American cities and violating the Constitution and the Trump administration of slandering the victims.
"Not only have the horrific shootings occurred at the hands of DHS (Department of Homeland Security) agents, but the agency is also guilty of violating the First, Second, and Fourth Amendment rights of citizens," Peters said. “Protesters are brutalized. Homes are searched without judicial warrants. Subjects are targeted for enforcement based solely on their skin color.”
Following immigration crackdowns in Southern California last summer, including the Buona Forchetta raid in San Diego, Peters introduced the Stop Excessive Force in Immigration Act. The bill would set a higher standard for DHS's use of force and set strict limits on the use of tear gas and flash bangs. It also requires the use of body-worn cameras and dash cams during immigration enforcement.
The bill was introduced in November, but Rep. Juan Vargas, D-CA 52, said the deaths of United States citizens made the issue more urgent, calling the Good and Pretti shootings "murder."
“Murder has changed," Vargas said. "I mean, it's fascinating to me how things have changed. If you look at the administration right now, they really are backtracking because they're telling us not to trust our eyes. They're telling us, don't believe what you see.”
Vargas was referring to the DHS claim that Pretti was brandishing a gun at federal agents during a protest. Subsequent cellphone videos of the incident showed otherwise. Rep. Mike Levin, D-CA 49, said those shootings should "shock the conscience of every American."
"Those videos show unspeakable tragedy, but they also show something deeply troubling," he said. "A federal agency telling the American people one story, while a very different reality plays out on camera, they show power being used without transparency, without restraint, without accountability."
Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-CA 51, was more forceful, calling ICE "a rogue paramilitary force" and calling for the agency to be dismantled.
"They've lost any mandate for immigration enforcement, and they've lost all trust of the American people,” she said. "We won't stand by while ICE and Border Patrol act with such disregard for human rights, human life and the rule of law."
DHS funding is part of a federal funding bill going before the U.S. Senate this week, and the representatives said they are in talks with their Senate counterparts about it. The Senate needs to pass the bill by Friday to avoid a partial government shutdown.
The San Diego Democrats said the issue is worth shutting down the government.
"The question ... is whether the principles in Scott (Peters)' bill, the principles we fought for in appropriations, whether we can get a few decent Republicans to come on board in favor of those principles and make sure that the Republican leadership understands we are not going to fund Homeland (Security) with appropriations unless you put those guardrails on," Levin said.
Darrell Issa, R-CA 48, is San Diego's lone Republican representative, and on Monday, he praised President Donald Trump's leadership following Trump's call to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
"He’s taking charge and reaching out and keeping the focus where it should be: Enforcing the law, targeting criminals, and protecting America’s homeland," Issa said in a post on X.
