Surgery center workers charged with blocking ICE from arresting immigrant who ran into their building
Disturbing footage showed a masked agent holding back a female member of staff by her neck as she tried to step in the way. The agent forcefully pulls the woman before another worker intervenes.
Criminal charges have now been filed against Jose de Jesus Ortega, 38, of Highland, and Danielle Nadine Davila, 33, of Corona, who are accused of assaulting and interfering with an ICE investigation, according to a federal criminal complaint.
Ortega was arrested Friday morning and has since made his first court appearance, while law enforcement is still searching for Davila.
The charges stem from an incident at the Ontario Advanced Surgery Center in San Bernardino County earlier this month.
'The media originally reported that the illegal alien was taken during a medical appointment. That was false,' according to Bill Essayli, interim U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, whose office brought the charges.
'The illegal alien arrested inside the surgery center was not a patient. He ran inside for cover and these defendants attempted to block his apprehension by assaulting our agents,' according to Essayli. 'It doesn't matter who you are or where you work, if you assault our agents or otherwise interfere with our operations, you will be arrested and charged with a federal crime.'
The assault charge against Ortega and Davila carries a maximum statutory sentence of eight years in federal prison, and conspiracy to interfere with a federal officer carries up to six.
According to an affidavit seen by The Independent, the incident occurred on July 8 after two ICE agents, conducting roving searches, confronted a truck carrying three men. The truck pulled into the surgery parking lot and two of the men fled when approached.
One of the men, who was reported to be in the United States illegally from Honduras, was detained near the surgery entrance, but resisted arrest and escaped into the building with help from a member of staff, according to the complaint.
Agents then came across Ortega and Davila inside the building, where the altercation was caught on camera. In the footage, Davila can be heard shouting 'let him go!' and 'get out!' at the officers.
deployment of National Guard service members and Marines.
'This arrest was not about law enforcement,' according to Synai Alas, the niece of one of the targeted immigrants, speaking at a press conference calling for his release. 'It was about silencing him. My uncle is being targeted and prosecuted, not because he broke any law, but because he has fearlessly stood up to defend constitutional rights.'
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The Independent
21 minutes ago
- The Independent
Schools are using AI surveillance to protect students. It also leads to false alarms — and arrests
Lesley Mathis knows what her daughter said was wrong. But she never expected the 13-year-old girl would get arrested for it. The teenage girl made an offensive joke while chatting online with her classmates, triggering the school's surveillance software. Before the morning was even over, the Tennessee eighth grader was under arrest. She was interrogated, strip-searched and spent the night in a jail cell, her mother says. Earlier in the day, her friends had teased the teen about her tanned complexion and called her ' Mexican,' even though she's not. When a friend asked what she was planning for Thursday, she wrote: 'on Thursday we kill all the Mexico's.' Mathis said the comments were 'wrong' and 'stupid,' but context showed they were not a threat. 'It made me feel like, is this the America we live in?' Mathis said of her daughter's arrest. 'And it was this stupid, stupid technology that is just going through picking up random words and not looking at context.' Surveillance systems in American schools increasingly monitor everything students write on school accounts and devices. Thousands of school districts across the country use software like Gaggle and Lightspeed Alert to track kids' online activities, looking for signs they might hurt themselves or others. With the help of artificial intelligence, technology can dip into online conversations and immediately notify both school officials and law enforcement. Educators say the technology has saved lives. But critics warn it can criminalize children for careless words. "It has routinized law enforcement access and presence in students' lives, including in their home,' said Elizabeth Laird, a director at the Center for Democracy and Technology. Schools ratchet up vigilance for threats In a country weary of school shootings, several states have taken a harder line on threats to schools. Among them is Tennessee, which passed a 2023 zero-tolerance law requiring any threat of mass violence against a school to be reported immediately to law enforcement. The 13-year-old girl arrested in August 2023 had been texting with friends on a chat function tied to her school email at Fairview Middle School, which uses Gaggle to monitor students' accounts. (The Associated Press is withholding the girl's name to protect her privacy. The school district did not respond to a request for comment.) Taken to jail, the teen was interrogated and strip-searched, and her parents weren't allowed to talk to her until the next day, according to a lawsuit they filed against the school system. She didn't know why her parents weren't there. 'She told me afterwards, 'I thought you hated me.' That kind of haunts you,' said Mathis, the girl's mother. A court ordered eight weeks of house arrest, a psychological evaluation and 20 days at an alternative school for the girl. Gaggle's CEO, Jeff Patterson, said in an interview that the school system did not use Gaggle the way it is intended. The purpose is to find early warning signs and intervene before problems escalate to law enforcement, he said. 'I wish that was treated as a teachable moment, not a law enforcement moment,' said Patterson. Private student chats face unexpected scrutiny Students who think they are chatting privately among friends often do not realize they are under constant surveillance, said Shahar Pasch, an education lawyer in Florida. One teenage girl she represented made a joke about school shootings on a private Snapchat story. Snapchat's automated detection software picked up the comment, the company alerted the FBI, and the girl was arrested on school grounds within hours. Alexa Manganiotis, 16, said she was startled by how quickly monitoring software works. West Palm Beach's Dreyfoos School of the Arts, which she attends, last year piloted Lightspeed Alert, a surveillance program. Interviewing a teacher for her school newspaper, Alexa discovered two students once typed something threatening about that teacher on a school computer, then deleted it. Lightspeed picked it up, and 'they were taken away like five minutes later,' Alexa said. Teenagers face steeper consequences than adults for what they write online, Alexa said. 'If an adult makes a super racist joke that's threatening on their computer, they can delete it, and they wouldn't be arrested," she said. Amy Bennett, chief of staff for Lightspeed Systems, said that the software helps understaffed schools 'be proactive rather than punitive' by identifying early warning signs of bullying, self-harm, violence or abuse. The technology can also involve law enforcement in responses to mental health crises. In Florida's Polk County Schools, a district of more than 100,000 students, the school safety program received nearly 500 Gaggle alerts over four years, officers said in public Board of Education meetings. This led to 72 involuntary hospitalization cases under the Baker Act, a state law that allows authorities to require mental health evaluations for people against their will if they pose a risk to themselves or others. 'A really high number of children who experience involuntary examination remember it as a really traumatic and damaging experience — not something that helps them with their mental health care,' said Sam Boyd, an attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Polk and West Palm Beach school districts did not provide comments. An analysis shows a high rate of false alarms Information that could allow schools to assess the software's effectiveness, such as the rate of false alerts, is closely held by technology companies and unavailable publicly unless schools track the data themselves. Gaggle alerted more than 1,200 incidents to the Lawrence, Kansas, school district in a recent 10-month period. But almost two-thirds of those alerts were deemed by school officials to be non-issues — including over 200 false alarms from student homework, according to an Associated Press analysis of data received via a public records request. Students in one photography class were called to the principal's office over concerns Gaggle had detected nudity. The photos had been automatically deleted from the students' Google Drives, but students who had backups of the flagged images on their own devices showed it was a false alarm. District officials said they later adjusted the software's settings to reduce false alerts. Natasha Torkzaban, who graduated in 2024, said she was flagged for editing a friend's college essay because it had the words 'mental health.' 'I think ideally we wouldn't stick a new and shiny solution of AI on a deep-rooted issue of teenage mental health and the suicide rates in America, but that's where we're at right now,' Torkzaban said. She was among a group of student journalists and artists at Lawrence High School who filed a lawsuit against the school system last week, alleging Gaggle subjected them to unconstitutional surveillance. School officials have said they take concerns about Gaggle seriously, but also say the technology has detected dozens of imminent threats of suicide or violence. 'Sometimes you have to look at the trade for the greater good,' said Board of Education member Anne Costello in a July 2024 board meeting. Two years after their ordeal, Mathis said her daughter is doing better, although she's still 'terrified' of running into one of the school officers who arrested her. One bright spot, she said, was the compassion of the teachers at her daughter's alternative school. They took time every day to let the kids share their feelings and frustrations, without judgment. 'It's like we just want kids to be these little soldiers, and they're not,' said Mathis. 'They're just humans.' ___ This reporting reviewed school board meetings posted on YouTube, courtesy of DistrictView, a dataset created by researchers Tyler Simko, Mirya Holman and Rebecca Johnson. ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Trump threatens National Guard to DC after young staffer's attack
President Trump vowed to 'federalize' Washington and send in the National Guard on Wednesday to crush violent crime in the nation's capital, citing the brutal assault of a young pro-Trump staffer known by the nickname 'Big Balls' as a breaking point. During a press conference Trump confirmed he is actively considering seizing control of DC law enforcement - a drastic step that would override local government authority and place the capital's policing under federal command. 'We're considering it because the crime is ridiculous,' Trump told reporters. 'We have a capital that's very unsafe. You know, we just almost lost a young man, beautiful, handsome guy that got the hell knocked out of him the night before last. I'm going to call him now.' The young man Trump referenced is Edward Coristine (pictured), a 19-year-old government worker affectionately dubbed 'Big Balls' by his colleagues. Coristine was violently beaten during an attempted carjacking near Dupont Circle around 3am Sunday, while defending his girlfriend from a group of teenage assailants. Two 15-year-olds have since been arrested in connection with the attack, which left Coristine hospitalized with a concussion and facial injuries. The case has quickly become the focus for Trump's broader campaign to dismantle what he calls 'Democrat chaos' in the capital. 'There's too much of it,' Trump said. 'We're going to do something about it… and that includes bringing in the National Guard - maybe very quickly.' Trump, who returned to the White House for a second term pledging to 'crush the deep state' and restore 'law and order,' has repeatedly portrayed Washington, DC, as a lawless zone of crime and dysfunction. 'We want to have a great, safe capital - and we're going to have it,' he said. 'That includes cleanliness, it includes other things… graffiti, roads that are in bad shape, medians that are falling down. We're going to beautify the city.' The remarks come just days after Trump posted an image of Coristine with blood running down his face, writing on Truth Social that D.C. crime was 'out of control' and that teenage criminals were 'randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent citizens.' 'They are not afraid of law enforcement because they know nothing ever happens to them, but it's going to happen now!' Trump warned. Coristine, who became known as 'Big Balls' for his outspoken fearlessness during late-night brainstorming sessions with Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has become an unexpected symbol of the administration's push to remake the capital. 'My friend Big Balls is a hero,' wrote close friend Marko Elez on X, sharing a photo of Coristine after the assault. 'He protected a young woman from an attempted carjacking by 8 thugs near Dupont Circle. 'Violence like this in the heart of DC is completely unacceptable,' Elez added. Even Elon Musk, under whom Coristine once worked as part of DOGE's original design team weighed in online. 'A Doge team member saw what was happening, ran to defend her and was severely beaten to the point of concussion, but he saved her,' Musk wrote. 'It is time to federalize DC.' Coristine, whose boyish face and Ivy League pedigree belied his MAGA bulldog persona, previously appeared in a Fox News segment highlighting his work to cut federal waste. But now his injuries, sustained in what police say was an attempted robbery by a group of teenagers, have made him the face of Trump's federal crime crackdown. While the Metropolitan Police Department confirmed it arrested two teens from Maryland in connection with the attack, but DC officials have been tight-lipped about further details. A spokesperson for the US Attorney's Office declined to confirm additional charges, citing an active investigation. Attorney General Brian Schwalb (pictured) addressed the outrage in a statement to The Daily Mail. 'No one who lives in, works in, or visits DC should experience this. It is horrific and disturbing… When MPD brings us cases with sufficient evidence of juveniles who have broken the law and hurt people, we will prosecute them and ensure they face consequences.' But that's not good enough for Trump, or Jeanine Pirro (pictured right), his newly appointed U.S. Attorney for the District. 'Our job is to get guns off the street, drugs off the street, and take care of those individuals that are threatening and carjacking other people,' Pirro said in a video message from the White House. 'And that's just what we're going to do. If you don't buy into it, you're going to have to deal with us.' The episode has reignited long-simmering Republican calls to strip Washington, D.C., of its autonomy, or at least curtail it dramatically. Trump allies in Congress have already proposed legislation to repeal home rule and bring the capital under full federal control. That effort is certain to face resistance from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who h as not commented publicly on Coristine's assault but has in the past fiercely defended the city's right to govern itself. While violent crime in the capital is reportedly down more than 25% from this time last year, carjackings and juvenile involvement in violent incidents remain stubbornly high. Just last year, a 14-year-old was charged with the killing of a Lyft driver in another high-profile carjacking. 'The rate of crime, the rate of muggings, killings, and everything else - we're not going to let it continue,' Trump asserted. 'You're going to be safe walking down streets. You're not going to get mugged.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
JD Vance denies CNN report of Jeffrey Epstein-related meeting
Vice President JD Vance denied Wednesday that he would host a meeting to discuss the administration's response to the Jeffrey Epstein files, ridiculing a CNN report that reported details of the planned event as 'fake news.' The vice president was specifically asked to address the report by President Donald Trump during an event in the Oval Office. 'I saw the report today, and it's completely fake news, we are not meeting to talk about the Epstein situation,' Vance replied. 'I think the reporter who reported it needs to get better sources.' Trump described the whole Epstein controversy as a 'hoax' that was 'put out by the Democrats ' to distract from his administration's success. 'That's just a way of trying to divert attention to something that's total bull[expletive],' the president added. CNN reported that Vance was hosting a meeting Wednesday evening to discuss the Epstein files that would include White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel (pictured) and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. The report was bylined by five different CNN reporters citing 'three sources familiar' with details of the event. The vice president's office denied the scheduled meeting after the CNN report was published Wednesday morning. 'The CNN story is pure fiction,' William Martin, Communications Director to the Vice President told the Daily Mail. 'There was never a supposed meeting scheduled at the Vice President's residence to discuss Epstein Strategy.' The White House did not respond to a Daily Mail request for comment. The vice president has been working behind the scenes to get Bondi and Patel on the same page, but is not specifically leading the administration's response to Epstein. A second source close to the FBI told the Daily Mail that Vance likely sees the Epstein files as a possible liability for his all-but-certain run for president in 2028, 'so trying to distance himself from the mishaps but also be part of the solution' is important to him. Blanche recently spent nine-hours meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell to discuss the case. Maxwell, Epstein's ex-girlfriend and business associate was was convicted of trafficking and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022. During the meeting, Maxwell told Blanche that Trump never did anything harmful in her presence according to sources speaking to ABC News. Administration officials are weighing whether to release transcripts of the interviews, but have not made a decision. Maxwell was transported from a federal prison in Tallahassee, Florida after her meeting with Blanche to a more relaxed security prison in Texas. Maxwell's attorney said after the meeting that she 'didn't hold anything back' in the interview, and spoke about 'one hundred' different people in the case. President Trump said he was unaware of Maxwell's transfer but described it as routine. 'I didn't know about it at all. I read about it just like you did,' he told reporters on Tuesday. 'It's not a very uncommon thing.' Trump has not ruled out a pardon for Maxwell. The family of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, a survivor of Epstein's abuse, issued a statement calling for the adminstration to meet with 'any survivor of the vicious crimes of convicted perjurer and trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein.' 'Their voices must be heard, above all. We also call upon the House subcommittee to invite survivors to testify,' Sky and Amanda Roberts said in a joint statement with Danny and Lanette Wilson. Giuffre died in April 2025, as the cause of death was ruled a [self-murder]. 'Any information that may be released by the government should take into account the survivors who wish to remain anonymous, for their safety and well-being. They should be consulted first,' the family members concluded. Democrats were quick to target Vance's role in the controversy, given that he once was a vocal proponent of releasing all the documents related to the deceased pedophile. 'The Epstein files coverup is happening before our eyes and the entire Trump White House is complicit including JD Vance who at one point tried to distance himself from it all,' said Tommy Vietor, the former Obama national security official and current podcast host. The Trump administration continues to weigh their response to the controversy that began a month ago after the Department of Justice released a memo that said Epstein did not have a 'client list' that could be released and that there was no evidence of foul play in Epstein's death in prison, after it was ruled a suicide. Vance last addressed the administration's handling of the files, denying that the they were 'shielding' Epstein and his clients. 'We're not shielding anything,' the vice president told a reporter who asked him about protestors in Ohio. 'The president has directed the attorney general to release all credible information and frankly to go and find additional credible information related to the Jeffrey Epstein case.' Vance has defended Bondi for her handling of the case, even as prominent Trump allies have blamed her for the tone-deaf handling of the case. 'I know, because I talk to her all the time, the attorney general is hard at work on that now,' Vance said. Vance insisted that Trump had 'nothing to hide' in the Epstein files and predicted more details about the Epstein case in the coming days. 'He's going to keep on being an advocate for full transparency,' Vance promised.
