ICE, DHS Tactics Get Pushback From Some Riverside County Leaders

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — On Aug. 6, 2025, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced a bevy of incentives for Americans to join Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Up to a $50,000 hiring bonus, no age restrictions, student loan repayment and forgiveness, good overtime pay, and other perks.

The DHS recruitment campaign drew more than 80,000 applications in less than a week, according to Noem.

ICE ranks swelled, and so have removals of people that DHS alleges are in the country illegally, including removals in Riverside County.

But criticism of DHS has intensified in recent weeks. Concerns over due process, treatment of detainees, lethal and less-than-lethal force against U.S. citizens, and lack of uniforms and body cameras worn by federal agents have ratcheted up tensions.

Rhetoric from the Trump administration has done little to quiet protests. For example, sticking a "terrorist" label on Americans killed by DHS — before an investigation even begins — has outraged many, including victims' families.

California leaders — and some in Riverside County — are pushing back against DHS tactics. On Tuesday, more than a dozen members of Congress filed an amended complaint and emergency motion seeking to restore their "right and duty" to conduct oversight of ICE detention facilities.

Democratic Rep. Raul Ruiz, who represents Riverside County's 25th Congressional District, was among the members who signed on.

In a joint statement, the congressional members said, “The Trump administration is using billions of taxpayer dollars to carry out a violent and lawless immigration agenda with virtually no transparency or accountability. This is not only deeply dangerous — it is an affront to the rule of law and to our constitutional duty as Members of Congress. 2025 marked the deadliest year for those in ICE custody in more than two decades, with record detentions and mounting reports of abuse and inhumane conditions. We can’t turn a blind eye. We are returning to court to restore congressional oversight and hold this administration accountable to the American people.”

It remains to be seen how the courts will rule.

In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law that bans ICE agents — and most law enforcement officers — from wearing masks to hide their identities. Federal agents are required to wear identification, including name and badge number. Several cities followed the governor's lead — including Riverside and, this month, Jurupa Valley — by passing resolutions that build on the state law.

The state gives law enforcement officers a choice: if they cover their faces, they lose the ability to assert “qualified immunity,” which protects officers from individual liability for their actions. As such, individual officers can be sued for assault, battery, false imprisonment, false arrest or malicious prosecution.

In terms of public safety, critics argue it can be difficult to determine whether a non-uniformed officer is legitimate or an imposter. ICE agents, often armed, wear facemasks and vests over street clothes. They travel in unmarked cars. Public trust is difficult to earn.

Regardless of citizenship, many people will not pull over for an out-of-uniform driver in an unmarked car. A weapon and a facemask could potentially heighten a confrontation, critics contend.

Regardless of concerns about officer uniforms (and lack of body cameras), the Trump administration said federal agents don't have to comply with the new California law. The president has sued the state to overturn the law.

California is also pushing back against the Trump administration's apparent refusal to cooperate with state and local investigations into the two recent federal officer-involved shooting deaths in Minnesota.

On Tuesday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, in coordination with Newsom, issued guidance reminding state and local law enforcement of their concurrent jurisdiction to investigate potential state law crimes committed by federal agents.

"Federal and state law enforcement have long collaborated on investigations that result in both federal and state criminal charges, with a presumption that neither law enforcement agency will obstruct the other’s investigations or thwart the objective pursuit of justice," according to a news release from the state.

Bonta also dug in last June when the Trump administration federalized and deployed California National Guard troops in Los Angeles in response to immigration protests. The move followed two days of unrest after an ICE-led immigration crackdown. The federal-versus-state standoff culminated in a U.S. Supreme Court decision in December rejecting the Trump administration’s reach.