A 21-year-old protester was left permanently blind in one eye after a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agent fired “less-lethal” ammunition at close range during a protest outside the federal building in Santa Ana, California, according to the man’s family.
Jeri Rees told The Los Angeles Times her nephew underwent six hours of surgery and could have died.
“For the next six weeks, he can’t sneeze or cough because it could do a lot of damage,” Rees told the outlet.
Rees said doctors found plastic, glass, and metal fragments in his eye and face during surgery. She added that medical staff also located a piece of metal about 7 millimeters from his carotid artery and decided not to remove it due to concerns it could be fatal.
Rees told the Times her nephew’s skull was fractured. She said the agent fired from only a few feet away. She also said her nephew is transitioning and uses he/him pronouns.
Rees alleged officers did not immediately call paramedics after he was struck. Instead, she claimed, they pressed his face into pooled blood.
“The other officers were mocking him, saying, ‘You’re going to lose your eye,’” she said her nephew told her.
Video shows chaotic arrest outside federal building
The incident occurred Friday, Jan. 9, and was captured on video. In a clip shared by ABC7’s Abigail Velez, three agents approach a group protesting outside the Santa Ana federal building. As one agent appears to grab a protester by the arms and attempt to take them into custody, others in the crowd move in to intervene.
One protester runs toward the agents holding a bullhorn, then appears to be struck in the face and drops to their knees. The person remains on the ground as an agent grabs them from behind and drags them across the pavement. At one point, the protester’s face appears visibly bloodied as they are pulled toward the building’s entrance.
The Times reported another video appeared to show the protester bleeding while inside the building, and that agents fired what looked like pepper balls at someone trying to record the scene.
Organizers say escalation was sudden
Connor Atwood, a member of the social justice organization Dare to Struggle, told the Times demonstrators gathered around 6:30 p.m. local time for a protest organized by another group after participating in an earlier Dare to Struggle event.
Atwood said tensions rose as the protest was winding down, but maintained the group did not try to move closer to the building or attempt to enter it. While some people left, Atwood said Dare to Struggle encouraged members to stay, and that some protesters later burned an American flag.
Atwood said Skye Jones, described as a leader of Dare to Struggle’s Orange County chapter, was arrested and another protester was struck in the eye around 8:30 p.m.
“It wasn’t just completely out of nowhere, but it was very sudden,” Atwood said.
DHS disputes family’s account, describes “mob of rioters”
In a statement, a DHS spokesperson said law enforcement faced violence outside the building.
“On January 9th, a mob of about 60 rioters threw rocks, bottles and fireworks at law enforcement officers outside the federal building in Santa Ana. Two officers were injured,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said two people were arrested and charged with assault on a federal officer and disorderly conduct, calling the unrest “a highly coordinated campaign of violence” and alleging some participants used shields.
The spokesperson added that one person arrested for disorderly conduct was taken to the hospital for a cut and released that night.
“Make no mistake rioting and assaulting law enforcement is not only dangerous but a crime,” the spokesperson said, adding that “Secretary Noem has been clear: Any rioter who obstructs or assaults law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Comes days after Minneapolis ICE shooting that drew national backlash
The Santa Ana protest came days after Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Wednesday, Jan. 7.
Good was returning from dropping off her 6-year-old son at school and driving home with her current partner when the couple encountered ICE agents, her ex-husband told The Associated Press.
Bystander videos showed Good backing up her Honda Pilot as agents tried to open her door, then moving forward and to the right as an agent—identified as Jonathan Ross—fired through her windshield and twice more through an open window.
The Trump administration said Ross acted in self-defense. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem accused Good of “domestic terrorism.” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rejected the White House account as “bulls—” and told ICE to “get the f— out” of Minneapolis.
