A US citizen who was shot by an immigration officer in southern California has filed a $۲۵m lawsuit against the federal government, alleging he was wrongfully shot and arrested, then subjected to a “malicious prosecution”.
Carlos Jimenez, a father of three from Ontario, a city east of Los Angeles, was on his way to work at a food pantry on ۳۰ October ۲۰۲۵ when he drove by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents carrying out an operation. It was around ۷am, and Jimenez approached officers “calmly and slowly” to inform them that children in the neighborhood would soon be arriving at an adjacent bus stop, according to his complaint filed in federal court on Friday.
An ICE officer, later identified as Eusebio Ortiz, then pointed his firearm at Jimenez’s face, cursed at him and threatened to shoot if he did not leave, the complaint says, citing audio recorded by the officer’s radio. Jimenez complied and attempted a three-point turn because he was blocked by officers’ vehicles, but in the process, Ortiz, without warning, fired multiple gunshots into the car, hitting Jimenez in the back and right shoulder, according to the lawsuit.
There was no officer in Jimenez’s path when he was shot, and there was no reasonable suspicion or probable cause to stop, threaten or shoot him, the complaint says.
Afterward, FBI agents followed Jimenez to a hospital and “interfered with his medical care”, including by pulling a nurse away and preventing him from talking to medical staff, the suit alleges. FBI agents removed Jimenez from his hospital bed, locked him in a waist restraint and drove him back to the scene of the shooting for an “interrogation” while a bullet remained lodged in him, the complaint continues. While Jimenez was bleeding and vomiting in the agent’s van, officers told him not to “ruin their vehicle”, according to the complaint.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said at the time Jimenez had “attempted to run officers over by reversing directly at them without stopping” and that the officer had fired “defensive” shots. DHS has repeatedly accused people of “weaponizing” their vehicles against officers, but a Guardian review in July found that most of the vehicle “assault” cases touted by DHS have fallen apart under scrutiny in court.
The Department of Justice (DoJ) charged Jimenez with assault on a federal officer using a deadly or dangerous weapon, with a federal complaint saying he had “rapidly accelerated in reverse” toward an officer.
The lawsuit says the criminal charges were “fabricated”. Even though DHS publicly called the shots “defensive”, the criminal complaint did not include any statement from the officer claiming he felt in danger, the lawsuit notes.
The suit further alleges that the FBI falsely claimed that two neighbors witnessed the incident and told an agent that Jimenez’s vehicle had enough room to pull forward without reversing. When Jimenez’s legal team interviewed those witnesses, both denied making those statements and said they were unaware there had been a shooting until they saw news reports, the suit says.
As the case proceeded, Jimenez’s defense lawyers sought access to officers’ text messages, and in May, a judge ordered the government to produce records of agents’ communications. Prosecutors then agreed to resolve the case through “diversion”, which would allow the charges to be dropped at the end of October if Jimenez abided by certain conditions.
The suit alleges that prosecutors were trying to avoid the potential disclosure of communications and prevent the deposition of the FBI agent who allegedly fabricated witness statements.
The charges were formally dismissed last week.
The lawsuit seeks damages for lost wages and medical expenses, saying Jimenez still has bullet fragments lodged near his lung. The suit alleges excessive force, assault, false arrest and other violations and seeks more than $۲۵m in damages.
DHS declined to comment, referring questions to the justice department. The FBI declined to comment. Ciaran McEvoy, a spokesperson for the justice department in Los Angeles, did not comment on the lawsuit, but said in an email that Jimenez “could have exercised his right to take the case to trial, but he instead requested that our office agree to resolve the case through a diversion agreement”.
Jimenez’s case echoes the ordeal of Francisco Longoria, a southern California man who was shot by ICE last year during a traffic stop, and then faced criminal charges, which were later dropped. The justice department in LA has prosecuted ۱۱۳ people for alleged crimes against immigration officers since last spring, but the Guardian found that as of mid-September, ۳۳ of them had charges dismissed and nine were acquitted by juries.
