Bill aims to prevent state and local law enforcement from assisting federal agents

Activists and community leaders gathered on Monday to support a bill that aims to shield legal observers documenting ICE actions and prevent state and local law enforcement from assisting federal agents. 

The Protect California Rights Act, SB 1105,was introduced by California State Senator Sasha Renee Pérez  (D - Pasadena) after several incidents throughout the state have been reported. This includes ICE operations that involve racial or identity profiling, criminalization of speech or the use of unauthorized weapons of war against Californians. 

“ICE has called on local police to block legal observers and rapid responders from documenting raids,” Pérez said. “Here in Los Angeles, LAPD formed a perimeter around a factory during an ICE operation, preventing observers from documenting what was happening.”

Pérez said under SB54 – a law that limits state and local law enforcement from using resources for federal immigration enforcement – it may have not been a violation because the police were not making the arrests. However, it was clear that LAPD was providing backup to the ICE operation.  

“SB1105 closes that loophole. It prohibits local law enforcement from assisting when federal operations rely on racial profiling or target protected First Amendment activity,” Pérez said. 

Citizens targeted speak up

Some of the citizens who have been targeted for documenting immigration activity in their neighborhoods joined the movement by sharing their stories.

Angie Vargas, a community observer, said she was documenting immigration activity on Jan. 19 when Alhambra police stopped her, questioned her citizenship status and accused her of running red lights and making illegal u-turns.

She was able to prove the accusations were not valid through video she captured and eventually the police video cam footage. 

Earlier in the month, on Jan. 7, Jose Madera, director of the Pasadena Community Job Center, was on his way to an event. This was a special day as it marked the one-year anniversary of the Altadena fires and the community would gather to commemorate this day. He then was alerted that immigration enforcement was taking place in the neighborhood.

“The Pasadena Police stopped me and questioned me at the request of this ICE agent saying 

 I was driving recklessly and I was running red lights. I was not,” he said. 

Moments later he was arrested and taken to the Pasadena police station. The word quickly spread and protesters gathered outside demanding his release. About two hours later he was released with a citation of obstructing a police officer. 

He said he doesn’t know how they communicate between agencies but it is clear that local police are watching ICE’s back and not the community they serve. 

In San Diego, Arturo Gonzalez, another local legal observer and activist, said on Christmas Eve he was pulled over by California HIghway Patrol (CHP) at the request of federal agents. 

“The citation listed reckless driving, but that was not the reason for the stop. The stop happened first and only after the officer looked for something he could cite me for,” he said. 

As a result, his car was impounded for 30 days, disrupting his life and daily patrol work.

Gonzalez said there have been multiple occasions where police have followed him without stopping him.  

“I want to be clear about this moment; there are real concerns about police violence and accountability that the community continues to face,” he said. “Community patrols are not a threat. We are neighbors, we document, we inform, and we try to keep people safe.”

Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights in LA (CHIRLA), said this ruthless nature of federal immigration enforcement throughout the country has resulted in injuries and even deaths of those who are part of rapid response networks.

“They are being killed on the streets of our cities. I want to say their names; Silverio Villegas Gonzalez, Jaime Alanis Garcia, Roberto Carlos Montoya, Keith Porter Jr. Renee Good, Alex Pretti,” she said. 

Data shows that 92% of people that have been arrested have no criminal record and they are being targeted based on how they look, how they speak and what they believe. Just in 2025, at least 32 people died in ICE custody, making the agency’s deadliest year in more than two decades. 

“When police and sheriffs aid ICE and border patrol and immigration enforcement, community trust is eroded and public safety is compromised,” Salas said. 

ACLU California Action Executive Director David Trujillo said SB 1105 would be enforced through a writ of mandamus or mandate.

“A person who is harmed by the agency who has violated this law can take that agency to court and get a court order requiring the agency to comply with SB 1105,” he said. 

The bill is co-authored by Senators Lena Gonzalez and Scott Wiener, and Assemblymembers Sade Elhawary, Mike Fong, and Mark González. It is expected to begin the legislative process and be considered in a Senate policy committee hearing this Spring.