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Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez was shot by ICE officers on April 7, 2026 in Patterson, Calif.
MODESTO, Calif. – A 36-year-old man in California was shot by ICE officers seven times and was being discharged from the hospital, his attorney clarified to reporters on Monday.
Shot seven times
What we know:
Dashcam shows ICE shooting, car reversing
Dashcam footage, provided by a driver named Christina, shows ICE officers surrounding the vehicle with their weapons drawn. The vehicle reverses and crashes its side door into a truck. An officer then holds his pistol at the window of the vehicle as it zips forward into a median and moves onto the opposite side of the divided highway. Via Storyful
Patrick Kolansinki, who is representing Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez – the man shot by ICE officers in Patterson off I-5 last week – answered reporters’ questions in an informal setting, saying his client was shot in the mouth, left arm, left leg, abdomen and somewhere on his right side.
Kolasinki added Hernandez is still in a lot of pain, and while he said his client is not in custody by any law enforcement agency, the FBI had also been restricting hospital visits to Hernandez’s fiancé, Cindy.
He has already undergone multiple surgeries and was in the ICU at Doctors Medical Center in Modesto. He can move a little bit and can sit up with assistance.
Kolasinski told reporters that Hernandez recalled that he saw his bones sticking out of his arm when ICE handcuffed him, and he wasn’t given any First Aid until an ambulance arrived on April 7, the morning he was shot.
During the middle of the reporter questioning, Kolasinski got a call from Cindy, who told him that Hernandez was being discharged from the hospital. Kolasinski ended the reporters’ call to rush to Doctors Medical Center in Modesto.
No further details were immediately available.
New witness saw ICE shooting in California, provides dashcam video
A new witness officially came forward on Friday with dashcam footage that may provide a critical look into the recent shooting involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Patterson, Calif., and raises questions about early-morning gunfire in the middle of civilian traffic.
Kolasinki said that Cindy was able to visit Hernandez on Sunday night, but only for 30 minutes and was told she wouldn’t be getting daily access. She brought a priest with her.
Murder, ‘weaponized’
The other side:
The Department of Homeland Security said ICE officers shot Hernandez because they wanted to question him with regard to a murder in El Salvador and that he “weaponized” his vehicle in trying to get away from officers.
Through his attorney, Hernandez, and a witness named Christina, have both said that ICE officers shot first, before dashcam video documented Hernandez reversing his car and making a hard U-turn to leave the scene.
Christina’s lawyer, Roberto Serrato, told KTVU that the FBI had scheduled an interview with his client on Monday, but then canceled despite her taking the day off work. He is representing Christina pro bono and emphasized neither he nor Christina are doing this for money.
Hernandez does not have legal status in the United States, and was acquitted of murder in El Salvador in 2019, according to documents.
What we don’t know:
It’s not completely clear that ICE’s desire to question him and that murder are related, as ICE has declined to answer that question specifically.
IF YOU’RE INTERESTED: Kolasinki has set up a GoFundMe for Hernandez’s family