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6d ago

U.S. Citizen Detained in Alabama Raids Files Class-Action to Halt DHS Worksite Tactics

The suit argues federal policies enable warrantless construction-site sweeps that rely on profiling, seeking a judge’s order to stop them.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents make an arrest during an early morning operation in Park Ridge, Ill., Sept. 19, 2025.
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WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 15: Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem speaks during an event where U.S. President Donald Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum in the Oval Office on September 15, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump signed a memorandum that will send members of the National Guard and federal law enforcement agencies to Memphis, Tennessee in an effort to decrease crime in the city. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Overview

  • Leo Garcia Venegas, represented by the Institute for Justice, filed a proposed class action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama this week.
  • The complaint says agents detained him at private worksites on May 21 in Foley and June 12 in Fairhope despite his Alabama REAL ID, with a coworker’s video showing him forced to the ground as he stated he was a U.S. citizen.
  • The filing challenges what it calls a DHS warrantless-entry policy authorizing raids on nonpublic construction sites and mass detentions based on demographic profiles, seeking injunctive relief and damages.
  • DHS publicly rejected the allegations as "race-baiting opportunism," asserting arrests are based on reasonable suspicion, and separately said Venegas obstructed an arrest, though no charges were filed.
  • The case lands after the Supreme Court recently lifted a restraining order limiting appearance-based stops in Los Angeles, as reports of expanded worksite enforcement continue nationwide.