U.S. citizen shot by DHS officers while in his vehicle files $25 million lawsuit

By Stephen Dinan - The Washington Times - Tuesday, November 10, 2026

A U.S. citizen in California is suing the Department of Homeland Security over his shooting last year, saying the department’s policies have made it too easy for officers to justify firing into vehicles and the government is too quick to cover up the details.

Carlos Jimenez was shot during an encounter in San Bernardino County, where officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection were conducting an operation.

Federal prosecutors charged Mr. Jimenez with assault but dropped the case last week. Mr. Jimenez then filed a lawsuit with 13 claims, including false arrest, malicious prosecution and failure to provide medical care.

People were interested in these podcasts

Mr. Jimenez said he approached the officers in his vehicle to warn them that children would soon be at a nearby bus stop. He said one of the officers brandished a gun and ordered Mr. Jimenez to depart, which he says he did, making a three-point turn in his vehicle to get around the officers’ vehicles.

One of the officers then fired through the passenger window, striking Mr. Jimenez in the torso.

DHS said Mr. Jimenez was unruly when he approached the officers and, after being told to leave, he seemed to accelerate backward toward one of the officers, at which point the first officer opened fire.

Mr. Jimenez said he was shot but drove off, seeking medical care. He was later arrested and charged with assault.

The shooting is part of a string of encounters that have seen ICE and CBP personnel fire at people in vehicles.

Mr. Jimenez’s lawsuit argues that Homeland Security policies were written “manufacturing justification to use deadly force” when vehicles are involved.

His lawsuit seeks more than $25 million for pain, anxiety and depression, as well as lost income of $25,000.

The lawsuit was filed Friday. It had not yet been assigned a judge as of Tuesday.

The Washington Times has sought comment from the Department of Justice.

In the now-dismissed criminal case, Mr. Jimenez’s lawyers sought to obtain text messages among the officers involved in the shooting. The government had said some of the messages Mr. Jimenez sought didn’t exist and others related to logistical matters that were beyond the legal discovery process.