Los Angeles Times: An immigration agent who was killed after shooting a supervisor during job-performance counseling last month had been the subject of complaints over his alleged use of "abusive and coercive" techniques following a workplace raid, according to documents filed this week in federal court.
An attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California wrote two letters complaining about the conduct of U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement agent Ezequiel Garcia during and after the June 2010 raid of Terra Universal Inc., a Fontana, Calif.-based manufacturer. The action resulted in the arrest of 43 workers.
Jennie Pasquarella wrote to agency officials in August 2010, asserting that Garcia had threatened to detain undocumented workers who refused to answer questions without their lawyers.
In a November 2010 letter, the lawyer said Garcia had detained one Terra Universal worker not held during the raid, Osfel Andrade, after learning he and others had filed a suit alleging wage theft and discrimination by the company.
Garcia warned Andrade that if he followed his attorney’s advice, the agent "would make things very difficult for him," Pasquarella wrote.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice declined to talk specifically about the allegations against Garcia, citing multiple ongoing investigations into the workplace shooting. Speaking generally, she said, the agency "encourages the public, if they have concerns about the conduct of our personnel, to report those concerns and they will be thoroughly reviewed and investigated."
Jim Stolley, ICE’s general counsel in Los Angeles, responded to the November complaint by saying that immigration officials found no evidence to conclude that Andrade was targeted for deportation because of his complaint against the company. Deportation proceedings against him are pending.
Allegations about Garcia’s behavior had been forwarded to his supervisor, Stolley said in an email.
Immigration officials also responded to Pasquarella’s first complaint, saying they would not pursue deportation against a 22-year-old woman detained after refusing to answer questions without her lawyer. They did not respond to allegations of coercive behavior by Garcia, Pasquarella said.
The complaints were filed in court as part of a civil suit seeking to compel ICE to provide detailed information about the raid.
In mid-February, Garcia shot Kevin Kozak, deputy special agent in charge for the Los Angeles area, several times at the federal building in Long Beach before being shot himself by another supervisor. Garcia was being counseled about his job performance at the time, officials said.
Jennie Pasquarella wrote to agency officials in August 2010, asserting that Garcia had threatened to detain undocumented workers who refused to answer questions without their lawyers.
In a November 2010 letter, the lawyer said Garcia had detained one Terra Universal worker not held during the raid, Osfel Andrade, after learning he and others had filed a suit alleging wage theft and discrimination by the company.
Garcia warned Andrade that if he followed his attorney’s advice, the agent "would make things very difficult for him," Pasquarella wrote.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice declined to talk specifically about the allegations against Garcia, citing multiple ongoing investigations into the workplace shooting. Speaking generally, she said, the agency "encourages the public, if they have concerns about the conduct of our personnel, to report those concerns and they will be thoroughly reviewed and investigated."
Jim Stolley, ICE’s general counsel in Los Angeles, responded to the November complaint by saying that immigration officials found no evidence to conclude that Andrade was targeted for deportation because of his complaint against the company. Deportation proceedings against him are pending.
Allegations about Garcia’s behavior had been forwarded to his supervisor, Stolley said in an email.
Immigration officials also responded to Pasquarella’s first complaint, saying they would not pursue deportation against a 22-year-old woman detained after refusing to answer questions without her lawyer. They did not respond to allegations of coercive behavior by Garcia, Pasquarella said.
The complaints were filed in court as part of a civil suit seeking to compel ICE to provide detailed information about the raid.
In mid-February, Garcia shot Kevin Kozak, deputy special agent in charge for the Los Angeles area, several times at the federal building in Long Beach before being shot himself by another supervisor. Garcia was being counseled about his job performance at the time, officials said.
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