- “The issue is clear-cut… California is not going to let the federal government make political targets out of people trying to be good stewards of the law.” – Sen. Eloise Gómez Reyes
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sen. Eloise Gómez Reyes on Jan. 6, 2025, introduced legislation aimed at disrupting the practice of federal immigration agents interrupting court proceedings to make indiscriminate arrests, a tactic critics say undermines public safety and access to justice. The legislation, SB 873, seeks to affirm that Californians are safe from immigration enforcement actions in and around courthouse grounds, according to the senator.
“The issue is clear-cut,” Reyes said. “One of the core responsibilities of government is to protect people — not to inflict terror on them. California is not going to let the federal government make political targets out of people trying to be good stewards of the law. Discouraging people from coming to court makes our community less safe. I look forward to the robust discussions that will come from this measure, and ultimately, toward providing relief to impacted communities across the state.”
The legislation is intended to address what advocates describe as an escalating pattern of immigration enforcement actions connected to court appearances. The National Immigration Justice Center reports that “twenty-two people, including a U.S. citizen from Chicago, subjected to unlawful arrests and detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the early weeks of the second Trump administration, are asking a federal court to demand the release of two people still detained and additional remedies to avoid future unlawful arrests.”
In its report, the organization describes families from different backgrounds and people involved in a range of court proceedings who were detained by federal immigration authorities, arguing the arrests demonstrate targeting based on prejudice rather than evidence of criminal conduct.
Advocates say the prejudice federal agents exhibit and enforce against members of the public is deeply harmful. ProPublica reports that “among the detentions in which allegations have not stuck, masked agents pointed a gun at, pepper sprayed and punched a young man who had filmed them searching for his relative. In another, agents knocked over and then tackled a 79-year-old car wash owner, pressing their knees into his neck and back.
His lawyer said he was held for 12 hours and wasn’t given medical attention despite having broken ribs in the incident and having recently had heart surgery.” These incidents of unlawful harm parallel arrests carried out during court appearances, with both reflecting what critics describe as unjust actions by federal agents.
Mark Fleming, associate director of litigation at the National Immigrant Justice Center, said “most [of those arrested are] people who have built lives here over decades, have families, many own businesses and, like most of us, were going about their lives trying to do their best when they became collateral damage of the Trump administration’s inhumane and illegal mass deportation agenda.”
“Using courthouses as arrest sites turns access to justice into a trap,” said Kate Chatfield, executive director of the California Public Defenders Association. “It drives people away from courts, harms public safety, and erodes trust in the rule of law. This past year, we have seen people terrorized in and around courthouses by ICE arrests. We are pleased that Sen. Reyes is championing legislation to protect California’s residents and California’s justice system.”
Edna Yang, co-executive director of American Gateways, echoed those concerns. “Our immigration courts should be places where people can seek justice and protection — not be ambushed and arrested simply for showing up,” Yang said. “The Trump administration has created a dangerous climate of fear that undermines both due process and the integrity of the legal system.”
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