ICE is Disrupting Law Enforcement in Pima County

ICE has been interfering with law enforcement in Tucson by impeding a murder case against a carjacker, refusing to pay invoices owed by Homeland Security and entering County facilities and harassing County staff without a warrant.

Immigration agents are blocking access to a carjacked indicted for murder, the County’s $12 million lawsuit against Trump, and the County’s demand to see warrants and ID from federal agents trying to bust into county facilities.

ICE is arresting Americans

Since President Trump returned to office in January 2025, multiple reports have emerged of U.S. citizens being wrongfully arrested, detained, and in some cases deported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). These incidents are raising alarms about racial profiling and constitutional violations as the administration pursues its mass deportation agenda.

The arrests of American citizens documented this year include:

• Elzon Lemus, a U.S. citizen electrician from Brentwood, New York, who was briefly detained during a traffic stop after agents told him he “looked like” someone they were looking for.
• Jose Hermosillo, an Albuquerque resident, was held for 10 days in Arizona’s Florence Correctional Center after ICE didn’t believe him when he said he was a citizen.
• Jason Brian Gavidia, an East Los Angeles-born citizen who was detained outside an auto body shop in Montebello, California, where agents demanded he tell them where he was born.

Senator Gallego: “Outrageous and Illegal”

“ICE exists to enforce immigration law, so it should be a no-brainer: U.S. citizens can’t be detained by ICE,” Gallego, D-Arizona, said. “But in Trump’s America, citizens are being thrown into detention centers just because of how they look to meet an arbitrary quota. It’s outrageous and illegal.”

Citing “rogue and unlawful behavior” by federal immigration agents, Sen. Ruben Gallego submitted a resolution emphasizing the agency cannot badger American citizens.

“I introduced this resolution to make it clear that the Senate stands against this rogue and unlawful behavior.”

Gallego’s resolution comes days after Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, introduced a bill in the House of Representatives that would similarly seek to force ICE to tone down its operations.

“ICE is acting like a rogue force, kidnapping and disappearing people off the streets with no due process,” she said in a written statement about her bill. “When ICE is conducting immigration enforcement, arresting and detaining U.S. citizens is illegal — and deporting U.S. citizens is illegal, full stop.”

Register now for ‘Democrats Defend Yourself’

Americans feel afraid because ICE agents in black masks are making warrantless searches and using extreme immigration enforcement tactics. Now you can fight the fear and defend yourself in our three-part, in-person DEMOCRATS DEFEND YOURSELF programs.

Register Now for a donation of only $50 at https://bit.ly/DGTDefend and support TheDGT.org in fighting for your rights.

Part 2: DGT Personal Self-Defense for Democratic Activists with expert trainer Victoria Suchanek.

• Victoria will lead a hands-on self-defense session just for our group. Learn how to break free from an arm grab or a hold from behind—skills for protests and real-life threats (not for use against law enforcement). Techniques are adaptive for all ages, sizes, abilities, and mobility levels, including those using canes or wheelchairs. Open to everyone: seniors, students, parents, and more.
• TIME: in person on Sunday, August 17, from 12:30 to 2 pm.
• PLACE: Rising Phoenix Self-Defense Studio, located at 4500 E Speedway Blvd, Suite 4.

Part 3: Know Your Legal Rights During Extreme Immigration Enforcement presented by renowned Tucson attorney Margo Cowan.

• What do you do when ICE agents are pounding on your front door? What if ICE arrests your grandmother in a wheelchair? (True story) She’ll also cover how to avoid arrest at an anti-ICE protest. Margo has practiced Constitutional and Immigration law since 1986 and is the Founder of Pima County Justice for All.
• TIME: in person on Thursday, August 21, 2025, 5 to 6:30 pm.
• PLACE: the Dusenberry-River Library, 5605 E River Rd, Tucson, AZ 85750.

Your donation of $50 gets you all three programs and backs DGT’s work to save our democracy. Register Now at https://bit.ly/DGTDefend

Part 1: Law Enforcement in the ICE Age presented by Pima County Attorney Laura Conover.

TIME: in person at 4:30 pm on Saturday, August 9.

PLACE: the Woods Memorial Library, 3455 N 1st Ave, Tucson, AZ 85719.

ICE is arresting American citizens.  Immigration agents are impeding a murder case against a carjacker, the County’s multi-million-dollar lawsuit against Trump, and the County’s demand to see warrants and ID from federal agents trying to bust into county facilities.