June 8, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; A police car burns under an overpass near Union Station in Los Angeles on June 8, 2025. Clashes between law enforcement and protesters intensified on Sunday as California National Guard troops arrived in Los Angeles to quell demonstrations against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, a move that the state's Democratic governor has called unlawful. Mangatory Credit: Trevor Hughes-USA TODAY Network via Imagn
Los Angeles, California – As immigration raids and federal enforcement tactics continue to stir fear and outrage across Southern California, Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis is moving to push back — with legal action and public education.
Solis announced plans to introduce two motions Tuesday that aim to challenge what she calls “unjust detentions and arrests” by federal immigration agents operating in LA County. The move comes just days after a viral video showed a man in the community of Valinda being violently thrown to the ground by federal agents, his head visibly bleeding before he was taken into custody.
Solis, a former U.S. Secretary of Labor and longtime advocate for immigrant rights, said the images were more than disturbing — they were unacceptable.
“These things shouldn’t be happening,” she said. “That undue use of force is not called for.”
One of the motions will direct the county to explore legal action against federal agencies — including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security — for enforcement practices that may violate constitutional protections. The scope includes allegations of excessive force, as well as detentions and arrests without reasonable suspicion or probable cause.
Solis emphasized the need for accountability, particularly when enforcement agents fail to clearly identify themselves or present proper documentation. “Whether it’s ICE or DHS or whatever agency, they should be transparent about who they are and why they’re there,” she said.
The second motion targets a different, but related, front: public education. Specifically, it proposes a countywide “Know Your Rights” initiative geared toward youth, particularly those engaged in protests. The goal is to arm young people with legal knowledge about what is — and isn’t — allowed during demonstrations, a step Solis says is vital in protecting the next generation of advocates and bystanders.
The twin proposals reflect a growing tension in Los Angeles, where local officials have increasingly found themselves at odds with the federal government over immigration enforcement. While Solis’s efforts are being praised by immigrant rights groups, the question remains whether local legal action can meaningfully deter aggressive federal tactics — especially in communities already fearful of being swept up in raids.
For now, Solis is trying to use every tool at her disposal. Whether that will be enough to rein in a federal apparatus often operating beyond local reach remains to be seen.
