‘None of us are safe’: Footage of ICE agent pulling a weapon on civilian goes viral but the internet is divided over whether it was justified

At this point we’re all starting to get borderline desensitized to all the awful things going on in the U.S., especially when it comes to the activities of ICE who seem to be acting more and more abusive as Donald Trump’s reign goes on. Only the truly hard-hitting stuff has the power to shock people out of their complacency nowadays, and even then, it’s not as effective as it should be.

Recent footage of an immigration officer pulling a gun on a civilian has gone viral online. The clip in question shows a man crouched behind a vehicle, according to a local news outlet, the man was trying to take a picture of the license plate. However, while he’s crouched behind the car, an officer steps out from the driver’s side and pulls out his service weapon before pointing it at the man. The man then flees the scene.

An overreaction from the officer? Or was it justified?

Many online labeled the officer’s actions as reckless and an abuse of power. Some called for more details about the agent, while others claimed that ICE are “on a rampage” and “none of us are safe.” The civilian was taking a photo of the agent’s license plate which many argued did not warrant the officer pulling his firearm on him.

The incident occurred around the same time as an ICE raid in Pasadena, California. KTLA 5 reported that immigration officers had been carrying out an operation at a bus stop near Orange Grove Boulevard and Los Robles Avenue on Wednesday morning resulting in two men being arrested. 

While many are firmly against the actions of the officer in the video, some tried to justify his actions. Individuals on X pointed out that the officer likely wouldn’t have known what the man was doing behind the vehicle. One person wrote, “He had no idea what that guy was doing behind his vehicle. He could have been planting an explosive, taking out a gun, who knows.”

Another asked “What phone is the picture taker using that he needs to get so close for a plate?” This isn’t an entirely unreasonable question to ask, most people wouldn’t need to get as close as the man in the video did. However, others pointed out that the agent had used a license plate cover which made it harder to read.

The video has caused some rather heated debates online already. In the last few weeks we’ve seen an increase in footage like this and it only serves to further erode public trust for agencies like ICE.