ADRIAN FLORIDO, HOST:
This week, I spoke with a man named George Retes.
GEORGE RETES: I have all the proof to prove I'm a citizen. My license plate is disabled veteran. I have a sticker on my windshield that says, Iraq combat veteran. My ID says veteran on it.
FLORIDO: This summer, Retes was arrested by federal immigration agents.
RETES: I'm a citizen. They didn't care.
FLORIDO: He'd been on his way to work as a security guard at a cannabis farm north of Los Angeles. Immigration agents were conducting a raid at the farm that day and had blocked the road leading there. A crowd of protesters had gathered, and as he drove up in his car, the agents forced Retes to reverse it. Then they tried to disperse the protest.
RETES: They threw tear gas behind my car, and they just engulfed my car in tear gas and smoke. I wasn't able to see in general. My eyes were watery. I was coughing, and I couldn't catch my breath.
FLORIDO: Then his driver's side window was shattered.
RETES: An agent sticks his arm through and pepper sprays me in the face, no questions. And they drag me out of the car, and I basically go into a rag doll - let them do whatever they want. I'm not trying to fight. I'm not trying to resist.
FLORIDO: George Retes is one of at least 170 U.S. citizens who have been arrested or detained by immigration agents since President Trump took office, according to a recent ProPublica report. NPR has not independently confirmed that tally. Retes said that he and others arrested were taken to the detention center in downtown LA, where he was held for three days.
RETES: Thursday night, when they take us there, we get around 10:30 at night. They in-processed (ph) me like a normal prisoner, I assume, strip search me. And as they're strip searching me, I ask for a lawyer. I ask for a phone call. They just completely ignore it.
And while they're strip searching me, I let them know that they sprayed me with tear gas and that I'm covered in pepper spray and that my body's burning. And I asked them for a shower. They say that the effects will wear off and that I'll get over it. And they put me in a cell, and that entire night, my body is on fire, nothing to help. My kids were on my mind that entire time. It was the one thing keeping me going.
FLORIDO: You said that while you were actually being detained and arrested outside of the farm, you were telling agents that you were a U.S. citizen, and they didn't care. Do you feel that you were racially profiled?
RETES: That's not a question for me, honestly. I can't tell you what the agents were thinking. I can't tell you their mindset. That is a question for them. And I want to know the reasons behind everything, too.
FLORIDO: After you wrote an op-ed in the San Francisco Chronicle about your experience, DHS said that you'd been arrested because you became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement. What's your response to that?
RETES: It's a complete lie. The proof is all there. There's helicopter footage. They never charged me. Even though they sent out a tweet telling everyone that I assaulted agents and they paint me as a criminal, they never pursued charges. They currently aren't charging me with anything. I felt like it was just a tactic to try to intimidate me or try to stop me from speaking out. And unfortunately for them, it's not going to work. I mean, I know the truth, and I have no problem sharing my truth. And so people deserve the truth and deserve to know whether or not the government is lying or not.
FLORIDO: Was it shocking to you to be arrested, as a U.S. citizen, by immigration agents?
RETES: It was just shocking in general. That whole ordeal - being in a prison, no phone call, no lawyer, no shower - that entire situation threw me for a loop. It wasn't just the arrest itself. That entire ordeal and the aftermath of just - I mean, before all this happened, I didn't know that federal officials were basically untouchable.
FLORIDO: At this point in our interview, George Retes said that he didn't realize how hard it would be to hold the agents accountable for what he considers a violation of his civil rights. Federal law makes it hard to sue the federal government. And so for the last few days, Retes has been making the rounds on Capitol Hill, trying to convince lawmakers to make it easier for people like him to seek compensation from the federal government.
RETES: Even if I walk into a courthouse, they are going to shut the door on my face saying, unfortunately for you, they're federal officials, and you get no justice.
FLORIDO: You're here in Washington meeting with lawmakers about your experience. What do you hope that they take away from, you know, hearing your story?
RETES: I hope they take away that this doesn't just affect one person. This doesn't just affect the left or the right. This is a civil rights problem that affects everyone. There's no accountability. There's no justice. Something needs to be done. Action needs to be taken to where federal officials are put on the same side as state officials. And this is a problem for everyone, not just me, not just for one race or one religion or one belief type. This affects everyone, and something needs to be done. That's my whole goal here.
FLORIDO: I've been speaking with George Retes, a U.S. citizen and army veteran who was arrested by immigration agents during a raid north of Los Angeles in July. George, thanks for joining me.
RETES: Thank you for having me. It means a lot. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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