Another activist allegedly attacked outside Sacramento immigration building

(FOX40.COM) — Another activist was attacked outside a Sacramento immigration building on Friday, a local group said, the latest in a string of violent incidents.

A court watch volunteer was outside the John E. Moss Federal Building when another man accosted him, NorCalResist Programs Director Giselle Garcia told FOX40. She said the alleged assailant arrived in a pickup truck, dropping off a woman at the facility before parking next to the volunteer.

Garcia said the man then took the phone of the victim, who she did not name, before “brutally attacking” him, beating his face and ribs.

“It was so long, I thought he was going to kill me,” Garcia said the victim told her after the attack.

The volunteer is a U.S. Marine veteran, Garcia said. He participated in NorCal Resists’ court watch program, which supports people who attend immigration hearings and other events at the federal building. John E. Moss Federal Building houses the Sacramento Immigration Court and has faced criticism from local leaders over its use as an ICE detention facility.

“He did not want to fight back because he was trying to de-escalate,” Garcia said.

Federal agents did not intervene until the alleged assailant was about to leave, Garcia said. There was no clear communication with the victim, she said, and she does not know if the man was arrested. She said the alleged attacker was taken inside the building and the victim was told agents would work on an incident report.

“When we see [the Department of Homeland Security] mobilize against protestors that are speaking out against them, they are very quick, the turnaround time is expeditious,” Garcia said. “But when we look at the situation here, where in this situation it was one of our volunteers … [who] was victimized in such a brutal way, it took so long before federal agents came out to apprehend the assailant.”

DHS did not respond to FOX40’s request for comment. A spokesperson for the Sacramento Police Department said they arrested a suspect for alleged battery, robbery, and other related offenses.

A series of incidents

Friday’s alleged assault is the third in a series of incidents outside the Moss building.

Last Saturday, a group of people allegedly attacked anti-ICE protestor Scott Stauffer outside the building. At first, a few people broke Stauffer’s car windshield, he told FOX40. When he fought back, Stauffer said the group then beat him with baseball bats and metal implements, wrestled him to the ground and “bear sprayed” him.

On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui, D-CA07, reported that her office was alerted to another incident. In a social media post, Matsui said a legal observer was struck by a DHS vehicle and then detained behind the Moss building.

“I am demanding transparency from DHS and am calling for an independent investigation into this incident,” Matsui said. “Attacks on legal observers and peaceful protesters through the use of excessive force will never be tolerated in Sacramento.”

Matsui said she is in close contact with NorCal Resist and other groups on the ground in Sacramento. Garcia told FOX40 that the victim of Thursday’s reported incident involved a group of regular protestors. She clarified that the man was not a volunteer for NorCal Resist but said the activist group stands with him, too.

‘We don’t have an option’

Garcia said the violence was unacceptable and that the victim of Friday’s alleged assault wants accountability for what she described as political violence.

Despite what happened, though, Garcia said the volunteer told her he planned to keep participating in the court watch program and that the incident would not stop him. She called the immigration enforcement-related incidents both in Sacramento and across the country a flashpoint for society — and insisted that people will not give up.

“People are recognizing that we don’t have an option but to collectively put our minds together, put our bodies together and resist,” Garcia said. “Because if we don’t do it now, it’s going to be so much harder to get out of the darkness.”

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Another activist allegedly attacked outside Sacramento immigration building

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