California has launched a new online portal for citizens to report misconduct by federal officers, hoping to push back against what state officials called a “campaign of terror” by the Trump administration.
Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement that he would “not stand by while federal agents abuse their authority in California”, vowing that “no one is above the law”.
The new online form allows users to submit photos, videos, and other evidence of “potentially unlawful activity” by ICE, CBP, federalized National Guard troops, or any other U.S. government officer within the Golden State.
“The Trump Administration is engaging in a campaign of terror and fear that has left some California communities scared to go about their daily lives,” said state attorney general Rob Bonta.
“From unmarked military-style vehicles to detainments that more closely resemble kidnappings, Californians are rightly concerned that federal agents may be crossing the line and abusing their authority.
“Let me be clear: federal agents can enforce federal laws, and no one should interfere with them doing their job. But they must also do so lawfully and in compliance with the Constitution.”
It comes after numerous reports and allegations of federal agents overstepping their legal bounds in California and beyond, as they scramble to implement the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda.
In Illinois, a federal judge ruled that immigration agents had repeatedly violated protesters’ rights by using force against them “without any apparent justification”, accusing their leader, Gregory Bovino, of “outright lying” about his conduct.
In Colorado, another federal judge found that Trump’s agents had repeatedly broken the law by arresting and detaining immigrants without showing probable cause, while authorities are investigating an ICE agent who was filmed putting a protester in a chokehold and throwing her down an embankment.
In California, both a federal court and an appeals court ruled that ICE agents had probably violated the Fourth Amendment by arresting people based on their race or ethnicity in Los Angeles.
And while some of those judges’ injunctions have been lifted by higher courts while the cases play out, multiple Democratic states are trying to rein in what they describe as lawless behavior by federal agents.
In September, Newsom signed a new law forbidding local or federal law enforcement agents from covering their faces while on official business. The Trump administration said it would not comply with the “unconstitutional” ban.
California’s new online form asks residents to fill in their contact details, full name, and address — although all of these are optional if you want to stay anonymous.
It then gives you a checklist of incident types such as “excessive force”, “warrantless search/arrest”, “unlawful detention”, and “voter interference/intimidation”, as well as asking which agencies were involved.
Users must give details about the alleged incident, including location, date, and whether anyone was injured, with a 2,000-character space to write comments. They can also submit up to 50 MB of photos and up to five links to videos hosted on other websites or social networks.
A message at the top warns users that submitting a report does not guarantee that anyone will take action, and that they should still report crimes separately to the relevant law enforcement agency.
In response, a White House spokesperson said: “Gavin Newscum and the state of California should be more concerned with the dangerous criminal illegal aliens they’ve allowed to invade American communities, rather than attacking law enforcement officers.
“ICE officers are facing a 1000 percent increase in assaults against them because of dangerous, untrue smears from elected Democrats… anyone pointing the finger at law enforcement officers instead of the criminals are simply doing the bidding of criminal illegal aliens.”
