Key Takeaways
• On April 22, 2025, CBP agents detained 15–20 day laborers outside a Pomona Home Depot.
• Congress members, including Norma Torres and Alex Padilla, condemned the raids, citing fear and economic disruption.
• DHS officials claimed a targeted operation, but confusion over agency roles deepened mistrust in Pomona’s immigrant community.
A group of Congressional members from California is publicly criticizing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration enforcement in Pomona, California. This follows a federal operation in April 2025 where agents detained several day laborers outside a Home Depot in the city. The incident has sparked strong reactions from lawmakers, local officials, and the community, raising questions about how DHS immigration enforcement is affecting immigrant families and workers, especially in Pomona.
Background and Key Incident
On April 22, 2025, early reports spread that federal agents had detained around 15–20 day laborers outside a Home Depot in Pomona 🇺🇸. Many of these workers were just beginning their workday when the agents arrived. Local immigrant groups and several city officials at first believed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was responsible. Later, ICE officially denied having been involved. Instead, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) stepped forward, confirming that their agents had been conducting an operation to arrest a person with a valid warrant. During this process, CBP agents also arrested nine more individuals. These people, according to authorities, were found to be in the country without legal documents, and some reportedly had previous criminal charges related to child abuse or assault with a deadly weapon.
Congressional Members Speak Out
Several Congressional members—Representative Norma Torres (D-CA-35), Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), and Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA)—all responded quickly and forcefully with strong words against these enforcement actions in Pomona. Their main issues were that such actions create fear and confusion, damage trust in the community, and hurt the local workforce and families who are often just trying to earn a living.
Senator Alex Padilla, Senator Adam Schiff, and Representative Torres shared a joint statement, saying these types of raids “[underscore] the deep distrust and economic chaos these enforcement raids foster, hurting entire communities.” For them, targeting day laborers, many of whom play a major role in the local economy, only leads to more fear, especially among immigrant communities who may already be reluctant to work with law enforcement or report crime.
Representative Norma Torres called the Pomona raid “cruel, unnecessary, and unacceptable,” and demanded answers from federal officials. She said: “We will not allow fear to take root in our neighborhoods. I’m demanding answers and accountability.” Senator Padilla also pointed out that this kind of federal action damages local economies because so many California 🇺🇸 communities rely on the work of immigrants.
These Congressional members, along with many others from the region, are calling for DHS immigration enforcement to focus only on people who present a real, immediate threat to public safety—not groups of workers who are just looking for jobs.
Local Government and Community Response
Local leaders reacted strongly, too. Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis quickly promised support to affected families by directing resources from the Office of Immigrant Affairs. She made it clear: everyone in the county, regardless of their immigration status, should know their constitutional rights and how to get help if detained. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors also made extra funds available to pay for legal help for immigrants caught up in enforcement actions like the one in Pomona.
Meanwhile, the Pomona Police Department said they had not cooperated with federal authorities nor received any advance warning that the operation was going to happen. Home Depot, on whose property the incident took place, chose not to make any public statement, leaving open questions about the company’s role or awareness.
Immigrant rights groups also spoke up, saying the raid would likely make workers more afraid to seek jobs, report abuse, or ask for help if they are victims of crime. According to these groups, broad operations like this can devastate entire communities and lead to people feeling isolated or mistrustful of any type of law enforcement—even local police who have not participated in the operation.
DHS and CBP’s Point of View
While Congressional members and activists have made their stance clear, federal officials from DHS and CBP claim their operation in Pomona was not meant to be a large-scale sweep but rather a targeted action. CBP officers say they were looking for one person with an active arrest warrant. The nine other people arrested during the operation, they say, were taken into custody because they were found to be in the country without legal documents and had previous charges, including offenses as serious as child abuse and assault with a deadly weapon.
ICE also specifically denied playing a role in the Pomona incident, which adds another layer of confusion and mistrust regarding which federal agency did what—a confusion that community leaders say only makes things worse for immigrants in Pomona.
Economic and Social Impact on Pomona
The economic effect of such enforcement operations in Pomona is one of the biggest worries for Congressional members and local officials. Pomona, like many cities in California, depends on immigrant workers, many of them day laborers who often find jobs outside places like Home Depot. These jobs are crucial not just for the workers and their families but for small businesses, contractors, and homeowners who rely on them for construction, landscaping, and repair work.
When day laborers disappear from their usual work spots—either through detention or fear—the local economy feels the shock. Businesses can lose access to the workers they need. Families who depend on day labor income can suddenly find themselves without money to pay rent, buy food, or support their children.
Senator Padilla and Representative Torres have both stressed how quick, sweeping DHS immigration enforcement actions can create a climate of fear so strong that even people with the right to work may avoid going outside, let alone looking for jobs. Worse, families can be split apart, leaving children separated from parents and entire communities feeling unstable.
Distrust and Fear in Immigrant Communities
Analysis from VisaVerge.com suggests these enforcement actions don’t just affect the people arrested—they ripple across the entire community. Immigrant neighborhoods can start to withdraw, avoiding public life and even essential services like going to the doctor or bringing children to school. This is not only a humanitarian concern but can also lead to real public health and safety issues when communities do not feel safe participating in civic life.
Congressional members point to this fear as one of the most damaging results of DHS immigration enforcement actions like what happened in Pomona. They say that members of the community may be less likely to contact police about crimes or help law enforcement solve cases if they think doing so might draw attention to their immigration status or that of family members.
Comparison of Congressional and Federal Positions
To clearly show the two sides, the following table summarizes the main positions of Congressional members and DHS/CBP regarding this Pomona incident:
| Aspect | Congressional Members’ Position | DHS/CBP Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of Operation | Indiscriminate raids harming community and economy | Targeted action for arrest warrant |
| Impact Assessment | Instills fear, distrust, disrupts families and workforce | Claimed arrests included people with criminal records |
| Call to Action | Refocus on real threats, end broad sweeps | Agents acted on specific intelligence |
| Agency Involved | Criticized both ICE/CBP involvement | ICE denied role; CBP confirmed action |
Wider Implications and Call for Change
For Congressional members, the issue is not just about Pomona. They say this type of DHS immigration enforcement can happen elsewhere and warn that it may have lasting effects on communities across the United States 🇺🇸. They want DHS and all federal agencies working on immigration laws to focus only on real public safety threats and not on actions that seem to target groups based just on where they gather or where they look for work.
Representative Torres and others are demanding more than just answers—they want changes in policy to make sure that hardworking people are not treated like criminals, especially when they have not been accused of any crime other than being undocumented.
Immigrant rights groups and local officials agree. They are calling for Congress to hold DHS and CBP accountable, require reports and explanations whenever people are detained in operations like this, and provide funds to help affected individuals defend themselves legally.
Resources and Next Steps for Affected Communities
People in Pomona and other communities who worry about DHS immigration enforcement can get more information about their rights and how to get help from the Los Angeles County Office of Immigrant Affairs. Extra funding for legal support and information on constitutional rights is available, and local groups are working to make sure all affected families get the help they need.
For more on the current immigration policies and Congressional efforts to address these enforcement actions, you can visit Senator Padilla’s official immigration issues page.
Final Thoughts
In summary, a group of Congressional members is standing up against what they see as overly broad and harmful DHS immigration enforcement in Pomona. They believe these actions do more harm than good, breaking up families, hurting local economies, and causing fear and distrust among immigrants. Critics are pushing for new rules that require enforcement to be more careful, more focused, and more respectful of those who come to the United States 🇺🇸 looking for work and a better life.
Support from community leaders and the commitment of extra funds for legal help show that the Pomona incident is not likely to be forgotten soon—either by those directly affected or by people pushing for changes in immigration enforcement across the country.
Congressional members vow to keep pushing for clear answers and strong protections for all communities, not only in Pomona but throughout California 🇺🇸 and the wider United States 🇺🇸. As they continue to call for the end of broad sweeps and demand that DHS immigration enforcement focus only on real public threats, this debate will likely shape future policies and the daily lives of immigrants and their families for years to come.
Learn Today
Day Laborer → A worker who is hired and paid daily, often for construction, landscaping, or other manual labor jobs.
CBP (Customs and Border Protection) → A federal agency responsible for border security and enforcing immigration and customs laws in the United States.
DHS (Department of Homeland Security) → The U.S. government department overseeing immigration enforcement, including CBP and ICE.
ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) → A DHS agency focused on identifying, detaining, and deporting unauthorized immigrants within the United States.
Arrest Warrant → A legal document authorizing law enforcement to detain a specific individual, usually for suspected criminal activity.
This Article in a Nutshell
A controversial federal operation in Pomona, California, saw 15–20 day laborers detained by CBP outside a Home Depot on April 22, 2025. Congressional leaders condemned these actions, citing fear and economic turmoil, while DHS claimed it was a targeted operation, deepening mistrust among local immigrant communities and raising national policy questions.
— By VisaVerge.com
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