Key facts
- Carlos Jimenez filed the $25 million lawsuit in federal court on Friday, alleging wrongful shooting and arrest.
- The complaint says ICE officer Eusebio Ortiz fired multiple gunshots into Jimenez's car on October 30, 2025.
- DHS said at the time that Jimenez tried to run officers over and that the officer fired defensive shots.
- The Justice Department charged Jimenez with assault on a federal officer, and the charges were dismissed last week.
- The suit alleges the FBI falsely claimed two neighbors witnessed the incident and that both later denied making statements.
Carlos Jimenez, a US citizen and father of three from Ontario, California, filed a $25 million lawsuit against the federal government in federal court on Friday, alleging he was wrongfully shot and arrested by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer and then subjected to a "malicious prosecution." The complaint says Jimenez was on his way to work at a food pantry on October 30, 2025, when he drove past ICE agents carrying out an operation near a children's bus stop.
The lawsuit says Jimenez approached the officers calmly to tell them children would soon arrive at the adjacent bus stop. It says ICE officer Eusebio Ortiz pointed his firearm at Jimenez's face, cursed at him and threatened to shoot if he did not leave, citing audio recorded by the officer's radio. Jimenez complied and tried a three-point turn because officers' vehicles blocked him, and Ortiz fired multiple gunshots into the car without warning, hitting Jimenez in the back and right shoulder, according to the complaint. The suit says no officer was in Jimenez's path and there was no reasonable suspicion or probable cause to stop, threaten or shoot him.
The complaint alleges FBI agents followed Jimenez to a hospital and interfered with his medical care, then removed him from his hospital bed, locked him in a waist restraint and drove him back to the scene of the shooting for an interrogation while a bullet remained lodged in him. It says officers told him not to "ruin their vehicle" while he was bleeding and vomiting in the agents' van.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said at the time that Jimenez had "attempted to run officers over by reversing directly at them without stopping" and that the officer had fired "defensive" shots. The Department of Justice charged Jimenez with assault on a federal officer using a deadly or dangerous weapon, with a federal complaint saying he had "rapidly accelerated in reverse" toward an officer. The lawsuit calls the criminal charges "fabricated" and notes that the criminal complaint did not include any statement from the officer claiming he felt in danger.
The suit also alleges the FBI falsely claimed two neighbors witnessed the incident and told an agent that Jimenez's vehicle had enough room to pull forward without reversing. When Jimenez's legal team interviewed the witnesses, both denied making those statements and said they were unaware of a shooting until they saw news reports, according to the suit. In May, a judge ordered the government to produce records of agents' communications after defense lawyers sought access to officers' text messages. Prosecutors then agreed to resolve the case through diversion, which allowed the charges to be dropped at the end of October if Jimenez abided by certain conditions. The charges were formally dismissed last week.
The lawsuit seeks damages for lost wages and medical expenses, saying Jimenez still has bullet fragments lodged near his lung, and alleges excessive force, assault, false arrest and other violations. DHS declined to comment and referred questions to the Justice Department. The FBI declined to comment. Ciaran McEvoy, a spokesperson for the Justice Department in Los Angeles, did not comment on the lawsuit but said in an email that Jimenez "could have exercised his right to take the case to trial, but he instead requested that our office agree to resolve the case through a diversion agreement."