2 weeks ago
Christian Cerna, 28, was driving pinch his partner and their 2 young children done Los Angeles, erstwhile 2 vehicles rammed his car and a group of men jumped retired and trained their guns connected them.
It was 11 June 2025, and arsenic Cerna exited his conveyance pinch his hands raised, he realized nan masked men weren’t thoroughfare criminals arsenic he initially feared. They were Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Cerna, a carpenter, is simply a US national and confederate California native. But ICE was targeting him aft a separator supplier reported that Cerna had “assaulted” him during a rowdy anti-ICE protestation days earlier. The officers arresting Cerna detonated flash-bang grenades and pointed battle rifles astatine his car, pinch his babe and toddler inside.
The agents, tribunal records show, were besides filming high-quality footage of nan apprehension operation, which they would later station to societal media.
The tactics, a national judge later said, were portion of ICE’s “vindictive effort” to “impose extrajudicial punishment”.
“It was for illustration they were trying to make a movie,” Cerna said successful a caller interview, speaking publically for nan first clip astir his arrest. “They were for illustration nan bullies successful precocious schoolhouse taking photos to humiliate maine … and to beryllium a constituent – to say, if you opportunity thing against what we’re doing, location will beryllium consequences.”
The communicative of Cerna’s apprehension and prosecution provides a model into nan anger and fearfulness sparked by nan Trump administration’s sadistic crackdown connected migrant communities and really national officials person sought to forcefully suppress dissent and demonize protesters successful nan media – leaving a lasting effect connected families caught successful nan crossfire.
A puerility shaped by deportation
For Cerna, nan determination to protestation was profoundly personal.
Born successful Long Beach, California, Cerna is nan boy of 2 immigrants from Mexico and spent his puerility often moving crossed confederate California.
When Cerna was astir 12 years old, he and his mother were pulled complete by migration agents who were looking for his father, he recalled. At nan time, they were surviving successful a godforsaken organization eastbound of Los Angeles, and his begetter was retired of municipality moving astatine a marina. On nan time of his father’s expected return, Cerna’s older brothers collapsed nan news: ICE had arrested their dad.
Cerna was inconsolable, barricading himself successful nan family’s garage. When he had a chance to speak to his begetter by phone, he refused: “I didn’t want to talk to my dada connected nan phone. I wanted to spot him.”
His begetter was deported, and nan family moved successful pinch an uncle, 7 relatives crammed successful 1 room. Cerna stopped going to school: “I hated ICE, because they ruined everything.”
That representation was connected his mind nan greeting of 7 June past twelvemonth erstwhile a neighbour knocked connected his doorway sharing rumors that ICE was astatine nan Home Depot adjacent his location successful Paramount, a southbound LA suburb that is 81% Latino.
Cerna, now a begetter of two, thought of really powerless he felt arsenic a kid to prevention his dad. “I’m a grown man now. I person a voice. If I spot something, I’m going to opportunity something. I’m going to definitive nan emotions I’ve held onto for truthful long.”
He hopped successful his car and drove to Home Depot.
The protest: ‘Like a combat zone’
Tensions were precocious crossed LA that week. ICE had targeted nan city’s garment territory and time laborers pinch highly publicized raids, marking nan Trump administration’s first large-scale surge of officers into a awesome city. As disorder reigned, section protests collapsed retired successful respective parts of nan city. It was unclear which national agencies were successful charge, and worry and uncertainty astir ICE’s plans dispersed crossed nan region.
When Cerna arrived astatine nan Home Depot successful Paramount, he didn’t spot ICE. But down nan street, while heading home, he spotted a conveyance pinch separator patrol, different Department of Homeland Security (DHS) section moving pinch ICE connected nan crackdown successful nan region. He pulled over.
“What are you guys doing here?” Cerna shouted while filming. “I’m a US citizen. I don’t want to spot your guys astir here!’”
Cerna sewage retired of his car. The scene, extracurricular a DHS office, quickly became chaotic. Dozens of national agents arrived, arsenic did much protesters and observers, immoderate insulting and filming nan officers and trying to artifact their vehicles, while agents shouted commands and astatine times sewage into heated confrontations pinch demonstrators. Many officers donned dense tactical gear.
Cerna was outraged astatine nan show of their battle rifles and subject garb, and cursed astatine and taunted officers while livestreaming, astatine 1 constituent saying if they gave him a gun, “I’ll return each you down.”
“All I could do was usage my words … I tried to intimidate them for illustration they were intimidating us, and I made ridiculous comments,” Cerna recalled. “They looked for illustration they were preparing to do raids connected al-Qaida … This is not a combat zone. You want to spell to warfare pinch American citizens?”
Videos showed chaotic scuffles betwixt officers and demonstrators. As tensions escalated, an supplier was filmed forcefully shoving a protester earlier a group of officers took nan protester and different demonstrator to nan ground. Cerna was opinionated nearby, and grainy societal media footage shows a separator agent, later identified arsenic Eduardo Mejorado, appearing to drawback astatine Cerna and past soon aft Cerna swinging his manus astatine nan agent’s face.
DHS officials person said Cerna “punched” nan agent, striking him successful nan face. Cerna and his lawyers person said nan supplier “lunged” astatine Cerna and that Cerna is simply a trained boxer, who reflexively swung backmost astatine nan supplier pinch an unfastened hand, but did not make contact. There were nary allegations successful nan government’s follow-up reports that nan supplier was injured.
Soon aft that encounter, officers, now successful helmets and much riot gear, started firing projectiles. Cerna recalled being deed by aggregate capsicum balls. A teargas canister struck his face, which near a clear pain people visible successful photos.
Also connected nan segment was Gregory Bovino, a California border patrol leader who went connected to go nan face of Trump’s deportation agenda earlier he retired successful March.
Body-camera footage disclosed successful tribunal captured him rallying his officers: “This is our fucking city!” Bovino said, though he and galore others were stationed 200 miles away.
“Arrest arsenic galore group that touch you arsenic you want,” Bovino said. “Those are nan wide orders each nan measurement to nan top. Everybody fucking gets it if they touch.”
The arrest: ‘I person kids!’
Cerna returned location from nan protestation pinch bruises, emotion depleted and anxious. After respective sleepless nights, connected nan greeting of 11 June, he and his partner, Abby Chavez, and their five-month-old girl and two-year-old boy sewage successful nan car to sojourn relatives and get tacos.
At astir nan aforesaid time, records show, officers pinch ICE’s homeland information investigations division, which focuses connected criminal investigations, had utilized societal media to corroborate Cerna was nan protester who “assaulted” an agent. As they prepared to apprehension him, officers started filming themselves. Footage disclosed successful tribunal showed agents readying nan apprehension and arming themselves pinch battle rifles, combat vests and different weaponry.
An soul strategy archive said ICE would usage a drone to way Cerna’s movements, pinch 4 vehicles of officers monitoring and pursuing him. An serviceman filmed from wrong a conveyance arsenic they followed Cerna connected nan freeway.
Cerna started to fishy he was being followed, he recalled, and changed lanes to spot if nan conveyance down him would proceed trailing him, but location were nary sirens and he wondered if he was conscionable being paranoid.
After Cerna exited nan road successful nan vicinity of Boyle Heights, 2 unmarked ICE vehicles collapsed into his car, surveillance footage showed. Cerna said he did not perceive immoderate commands to propulsion complete earlier nan collision. The video from a adjacent business shows achromatic fume exploding by Cerna’s car arsenic nan officers fired flash-bangs wrong seconds. The officers exited their cars pinch battle rifles and handguns drawn.
Chavez said she initially thought it was a car accident, past worried nan men were criminals trying to abduct them. Cerna exited nan car successful hopes of drafting nan guns distant from his children.
Soon, an serviceman arrived filming pinch what appeared to beryllium a handheld tripod.
“I person kids!” Cerna said, arsenic 1 serviceman pointed an battle firearm astatine him astatine adjacent range.
“Shut nan fuck up and listen!” different serviceman responded.
Chavez, hyperventilating wrong nan car, filmed officers pointing firearms astatine them. Her toddler held a artifact car arsenic he stared astatine nan men.
Mejorado, nan unfortunate of Cerna’s alleged assault, was besides coming arsenic Cerna was handcuffed, nan videos show.
“Remember Saturday … Remember me?” asked Mejorado.
“I retrieve erstwhile … you put your hands connected me,” responded Cerna, who had not been told of his Miranda rights, nan correct to stay silent earlier being questioned, arsenic required by nan constitution.
It was unclear why Mejorado was present. ICE’s strategy archive shows neither he nor separator patrol was portion of nan apprehension team.
The agents transported Cerna to a DHS agency wherever he was further questioned, and a nationalist affairs charismatic arrived to return photos. Chavez, who doesn’t drive, was near down pinch their car and 2 children. She was concerned astir imaginable injuries from nan crash, and she and nan kids were taken by ambulance to nan hospital.
A DHS spokesperson said successful an email that agents observed Cerna leaving his location and past saw him “driving erratically … putting different drivers and his passengers, who were later identified arsenic his woman and 2 insignificant children, astatine risk”. The spokesperson did not reply questions astir whether agents took steps to propulsion him complete earlier nan crash, saying he “refused to comply pinch a conveyance stop” and officers “performed a conveyance interdiction/pin maneuver to halt his vehicle”.
DHS declined to reply questions astir why Mejorado was coming and said Cerna was publication his Miranda rights. Records show a different serviceman said he told Cerna of his correct to stay silent astatine a later constituent successful nan day. Mejorado could not beryllium reached for comment.
Kristi Noem’s ‘message’
As footage of nan clang quickly dispersed online, section news initially reported nan incident arsenic a hit-and-run. DHS started posting its videos of nan cognition connected X soon after, writing: “This was a targeted apprehension of a convulsive rioter who punched a [border patrol] officer,” and claiming he “attempted to flee”. The connection straight contradicted nan footage, which showed Cerna’s contiguous surrender.
The station referenced past DHS caput Kristi Noem, saying her “message to nan LA rioters is clear: you will not extremity america aliases slow america down”, adding, “If you laic a manus connected a rule enforcement officer, you will beryllium prosecuted.”
ICE’s X relationship posted nan high-resolution apprehension footage that evening and shared it again nan pursuing time pinch a tv emoji, on pinch a photograph of him being handcuffed and a YouTube nexus to “watch nan afloat video”.
Scott Tenley, Cerna’s lawyer and a erstwhile national prosecutor, said successful 20 years of criminal defense, he had ne'er seen officers movie themselves readying and executing an arrest: “You’re not making a documentary. You’re expected to beryllium fighting crime.”
DHS declined to reply questions astir its societal media strategy and why it filmed nan apprehension operation.
Cerna was charged pinch felony assault, nan authorities alleging he deliberately punched Mejorado.
The government’s lawsuit faced an first challenge: The Department of Justice successful LA, which was pursuing a drawstring of akin cases astatine nan time, named a different protester and nan incorrect unfortunate successful its indictment, a serious error. The lawsuit nevertheless proceeded, pinch a complaint carrying a imaginable eight-year sentence.
From jail, Cerna tried to guarantee Chavez he was OK and told her not to put his crying two-year-old boy connected nan telephone since it was only making him much upset. Privately, he feared his life was over: “I thought nan authorities was going to propulsion maine nether nan autobus and hide maine … They were trying to incite fearfulness into group and make an illustration retired of me.”
Cerna was released aft a week and put connected location apprehension pinch GPS monitoring.
The accent overwhelmed his family. His babe girl developed a full-body rash, which Chavez suspected was stress-related. Chavez struggled to eat and mislaid 20lbs. Cerna was hospitalized pinch a ruptured appendix, which, according to tribunal records, his doctors attributed to stress. He went connected disablement time off and stopped moving arsenic a carpenter.
Their boy was deed nan hardest. He sobbed erstwhile Cerna came location from jail, past began screaming and crying immoderate clip he was separated from his father, moreover if Cerna was conscionable successful nan bathroom, Cerna said. At night, “He’d aftermath up screaming pinch nightmares, ‘Dad! Dad!’ and I’d say, ‘Relax, I’m correct here,’” Cerna said.
Chavez and Cerna said they person some knowledgeable symptoms of post-traumatic accent disorder, including panic attacks, sometimes triggered by nan show of suspicious cars. As nan lawsuit dragged into nan fall, they became eager for a resolution.
A judge’s rebuke
Cerna didn’t want to consequence a imaginable lengthy situation condemnation from a felony conviction.
In December, he pleaded blameworthy to elemental battle connected an officer, a lesser misdemeanor that doesn’t require immoderate allegations of beingness interaction and carries a maximum one-year sentence. The statement said he “intentionally swung at” nan separator agent’s face, but did not opportunity he punched aliases injured nan officer.
Prosecutors based on successful filings that Cerna should beryllium jailed for 8 months, citing his verbal threats during nan protestation and submitting footage of Cerna astatine 1 constituent throwing a h2o vessel and firecracker successful nan guidance of officers. Cerna’s lawyer based on he should get nary jailhouse time, saying officers had utilized unnecessary unit and unit astatine nan protest, Cerna had not made interaction pinch nan agent, and only threw objects aft he was deed successful nan look by a teargas canister. Cerna’s lawyer noted he had already faced important consequences, including a sadistic arrest, a week successful jailhouse and 2 months of location confinement.
The DoJ declined to comment.
At sentencing successful March, Chavez sat pinch their girl successful her arms arsenic US judge Cynthia Valenzuela announced Cerna’s fate.
Valenzuela criticized Cerna for making “violent threats”, saying his protestation actions were “inappropriate” and “dangerous”. She besides said he appeared to beryllium a “hard-working, honorable and respectful man” and had nary criminal history. She acknowledged nan trauma of his father’s deportation and unit he witnessed successful his younker had influenced his actions. She said location was nary grounds nan supplier was injured.
Then she denounced ICE for its “troubling” apprehension tactics. Pinning his car, she said, was unnecessary and endangered his family and nan public. She noted officers pointed battle rifles “even arsenic he surrendered peacefully and begged them not to harm his children” and said it was concerning Mejorado showed up and interrogated Cerna without giving him a Miranda warning.
The judge noted nan DHS’s promotion of nan apprehension video connected societal media, saying: “The circumstances of nan apprehension propose a vindictive effort by authorities officials to enforce extrajudicial reward and to circumvent protections of owed process to which suspect was entitled.”
She sentenced him to 1 twelvemonth of probation and nary jailhouse time.
Outside court, Cerna and Chavez embraced and cried.
