Overview

• During Secretary Kristi Noem’s June 12 press conference in Los Angeles, Senator Alex Padilla was pushed from the podium, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed by federal agents.
• Plainclothes Homeland Security agents removed him from the podium when he sought to ask a question; FBI officers then secured his handcuffs.
• Padilla was released within minutes without formal charges and has pledged to seek accountability from the Trump administration.
• Governor Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass publicly condemned the use of force against a sitting U.S. senator as unacceptable.
• The incident underscores growing friction between California’s leadership and the Trump administration over immigration enforcement and protest management.