US citizens invoke new California law against immigration agents

Three U.S. citizens who accuse federal immigration agents of unlawfully detaining them and using excessive force have invoked California's newly enacted No Kings Act in what their attorneys say are the first lawsuits brought under the law.

Carrillo Law Firm filed amended complaints Tuesday on behalf of Cary Lopez, Javier Ramirez and Angel Piña, the same day Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 747. Codified at Civil Code Section 53.8, the law creates a state cause of action against people acting under color of law, including federal law, for violations of rights protected by the U.S. Constitution.

"What happened to Cary, Javier, and Angel is an outrageous abuse of government power," attorney Luis A. Carrillo said in announcing the filings. "We acted the moment the No Kings Act took effect because our clients have waited too long for justice."

The law took effect immediately and applies retroactively to alleged violations occurring on or after March 1, 2025. It allows defendants to assert absolute or qualified immunity to the same extent as defendants sued under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 under similar circumstances and preserves otherwise available sovereign immunity. Prevailing plaintiffs may recover reasonable attorney fees and costs, including expert fees.

The three lawsuits, which also assert federal and other state claims, arise from separate encounters with immigration officers in Southern California.

Lopez alleges she was nine months pregnant when agents confronted her on private property in Hawthorne on June 8, 2025. According to her complaint, agents grabbed and twisted her arm, pushed her against a truck with her pregnant belly pressed against the vehicle, and shackled her hands and legs. She alleges she was detained for about nine hours despite being a U.S. citizen and that the encounter contributed to premature labor and birth. Lopez v. United States of America, 2:26-cv-05628-DMG-AS (C.D. Cal., filed May 26, 2026).

Piña alleges federal agents chased and tackled him outside a Stater Bros. market in Ontario on July 21, 2025, after his wife called 911 while watching agents confront a teenage girl. He claims agents piled on top of him, handcuffed him and placed him in an immigration enforcement vehicle despite his repeated statements that he was a U.S. citizen. He was later taken by ambulance to a hospital for injuries he attributes to the encounter. Piña v. United States of America, 5:26-cv-02843-JGB-ACCV (C.D. Cal., filed May 26, 2026).

Ramirez alleges agents entered his family's private business property in Montebello without a warrant, took him to the ground and detained him for four days despite his assertions that he was a U.S. citizen. Carrillo Law Firm also says Ramirez was denied diabetes medication while in custody. Ramirez v. United States of America, 2:26-cv-05633-MWF-AJR (C.D. Cal., filed May 26, 2026).

The amended complaints seek damages against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act and assert claims against unidentified federal officers under the new California law, along with constitutional and other state-law claims.

Carrillo said the law gives his clients another avenue to seek damages for their encounters with federal officers. His firm described the amended complaints as the first filed in California under the No Kings Act, a claim the Daily Journal could not independently confirm.

The defendants did not respond to requests for comment by press time Thursday.