ICE detention of student was ‘unconstitutional racial profiling,’ family alleges in claim

Attorneys announced Tuesday that they have filed a $1-million damage claim against the Trump administration alleging that the recent detention of a 15-year-old boy outside Arleta High School amounted to the “unconstitutional racial profiling” of a U.S. citizen.

The claim, filed on Monday according to paperwork provided by attorneys, cited “conduct of ICE agents and Border Patrol agents that caused the false arrest, false imprisonment, assault, [and] battery” of the boy on Aug. 11.

The Trump administration on Tuesday denied any wrongdoing, saying that the incident was one of mistaken identity.

According to school district officials, federal agents drew weapons on the boy, who is a student with a disability, and handcuffed him before his mother persuaded the agents that her son was not the individual they were looking for.

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The student’s mother, Andreina Mejia, affirmed those details at a Tuesday news conference outside school district headquarters, just west of downtown L.A. While she waited in the car with her son, who attends San Fernando High School, a white truck drove up quickly — so quickly she thought it would hit her vehicle.

At least two masked men with guns approached — one on each side of the car. She said the officers pulled both of them from the car and separated them. Her son had difficulty removing his seat belt, but he did not resist as he was placed immediately in handcuffs.

“I looked at my son’s reaction, and I saw that he was scared,” Mejia said. “He didn’t know what was going on, so I just told him: ‘Don’t make any movement. Don’t move. Just follow instructions.’”

She remembers thinking: “He could be making a movement that he’s not supposed to make, and they could do something to him.”

Mejia said her son has difficulty processing language and expressing himself and receives special services. His disability put him at greater risk, she said, but he handled himself well, telling the officers that he is an American citizen, 15 years old and a student.

Mejia said she volunteered to retrieve identification for her son from their home, although this offer was not accepted. About seven minutes after the confrontation began, officers were persuaded they had detained the wrong person.

An officer then joked, to mother and son, that the boy would have an exciting experience to tell his friends about.

“There’s nothing exciting about getting guns pointed at you, especially when you’re a 15-year-old,” Mejia said.

According to the cover letter of the claim, signed by attorney Luis Carrillo, “the ICE agents and Border Patrol agents falsely claimed that [the student] was a suspect of a crime.”

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security denied racial profiling.

“Allegations that Border Patrol targeted Arleta High School are FALSE,” the department statement said. “Agents were conducting a targeted operation on [a] criminal illegal alien.”

“What makes someone a target for immigration enforcement is if they are illegally in the U.S. — NOT their skin color, race, or ethnicity,” the statement said. “America’s brave men and women are removing murderers, MS-13 gang members, pedophiles, rapists — truly the worst of the worst from Golden State communities.”

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Officials added: “This is a case study of billboard law firms trying to turn family resemblance into racial animus to collect clicks, clout, and cash.”

The department also praised the mother for being cooperative in an investigation that led to the arrest — later that same day — of the boy’s cousin, an unauthorized immigrant who, according to the department, had a 2021 misdemeanor conviction for carrying a concealed weapon.

On Tuesday, attorneys for the Mejia family said the Homeland Security account misrepresented the situation. They said the man ultimately arrested is not a member of the same family and is of a different nationality. They do not look alike, the attorneys said.

“There’s no resemblance, except for the brown color,” said Carrillo. “That’s why they were confused thinking that this — her boy — was the gang member when there was never a case.”

Attorney Michael Carrillo said that linking the family to the arrest of a gang member could potentially have put the family in danger.

A claim, such as the one filed in this case, provides a government entity the opportunity to assess and compensate alleged victims. If a claim is denied, parties have the option to pursue litigation. The claim was filed with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In discussing the Arleta High incident, L.A. schools Supt. Alberto Carvalho talked, at a recent news conference, of what he learned from the family, from school administrators and from reviewing video.

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“He was released, but the trauma in his mind has not been released,” Carvalho said. “I spoke with the mom. He cries. He is upset. He is depressed. He keeps asking if this is going to happen again.”

Federal officials have said no place is off limits — including schools — as they press to reach President Trump’s goal of 1 million deportations per year.

Immigration agents attempted to enter two Los Angeles elementary schools in April, but the principals turned them away. The Arleta High incident renewed concerns because it happened on the campus perimeter. Immigration agents also recently arrested — on Aug. 8 — an 18-year-old Reseda High senior as he was walking the family dog near their Van Nuys home.

Federal officials have defended the arrest — and ongoing detention — of the Reseda High student, Benjamin Guerrero-Cruz, as appropriate because they say he is in the country illegally.

After the Arleta incident, the officials lauded the ultimate arrest of the targeted individual.

“Once again, our agents keeping streets and the American tax-payer safe from criminals and we will keep doing so until the mission is accomplished,” said U.S. Border Patrol Sector Chief Gregory Bovino in a social media post.

“This illegal alien from El Salvador was arrested in Pacoima, CA.,” Bovino posted on social media about the boy’s purported cousin. “Not only was he illegally in the United States, but he also has a misdemeanor in 2021 for ‘carrying a concealed weapon on person.’ He is also suspected of being a member of the MS-13 street gang,” Bovina posted on social media.

Mejia’s attorneys called on President Trump to exempt schools and areas near them from immigration enforcement actions. They also called on the school district to release video footage of the incident. The district has declined requests from multiple parties, including The Times, citing privacy restrictions.

School board member Kelly Gonez, who represents the Arleta High area, said the officers acted improperly.

“Such actions — violently detaining a child just outside a public school — are absolutely reprehensible and should have no place in our country,” Gonez said in a social media post.