The main issue arose when ICE agents in Colorado, during a recorded encounter, pointed guns at a family and smashed a car window with an infant inside, sparking significant concern about the agency’s use of force and adherence to the law.
ICE agents in Colorado were filmed shattering a car window while a newborn was inside, prompting new allegations of excessive force.
The video, widely shared by U.S. media, has reignited concerns over ICE arrest practices.
The footage shows masked, plainclothes agents pointing firearms and smashing the window of a car occupied by a couple and their one-month-old child in Alamosa, Colorado.
The incident occurred last week as the family was returning from a routine immigration check at the Alamosa County courthouse.
According to Maya England’s mother, 21, who was in the back seat with the baby, three unmarked SUVs began following them before activating their lights; one swerved to block the vehicle. At an intersection, the SUVs boxed the car in, and ICE agents in civilian attire, their faces covered, approached with guns drawn.
England’s recording captures an agent shouting, “Open the door!” When she asked why they were being stopped, one agent began striking the window with a baton until the glass shattered. England can be heard yelling, “There’s a child!” and “There’s a baby!” Another agent shouted, “Open the f—ing door.” Despite the mother’s pleas, noting the infant was one month old, the confrontation escalated, according to Mirror US.
The driver, Jose Aguilera, who had already rolled down the windows to communicate, exited and surrendered to the authorities. Agents said he was the subject of an immigration warrant. England asked to see the warrant; an agent told her she could view it at their office. She followed the convoy to the ICE offices, but said no one provided the document.
Mirror US reports that Aguilera, a Mexican national, was taken into custody. England said she last heard from him Monday evening; by Tuesday evening, his name no longer appeared in ICE’s online detainee locator, and his whereabouts were unknown to her.
A legally fraught operation
State law complicates the incident. A Colorado statute, effective since 2020, bars ICE from arresting individuals who are going to or coming from a courthouse. The family was returning from a court check-in, Mirror US noted. ICE has not commented on the episode or explained its legal basis.
The video, posted by England on social platforms, drew swift reactions from immigrant-rights advocates. Tim Macdonald, legal director of the ACLU of Colorado, called the footage “deeply disturbing,” adding that “it should trouble any American,” according to Mirror US. Immigration lawyers cited by the outlet emphasized that even with a warrant, enforcement protocols must protect vulnerable individuals—especially infants.
The Alamosa stop comes amid a series of controversies over ICE operational tactics. Mirror US pointed to a separate confrontation at 26 Federal Plaza in New York, where journalists covering enforcement activity near an immigration court were shoved by federal agents. L. Vural Elibol, a visual journalist for Turkey’s Anadolu agency, suffered a head injury and was transported on a stretcher; Dean Moses of amNewYork and freelancer Olga Fedorova were also jostled, as documented by Documented and amNewYork.
Responding to criticism, Tricia McLaughlin, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, defended the agents, saying they were “swarmed by agitators and members of the press, which obstructed operations.” She added: “Officers repeatedly told the crowd of agitators and journalists to get back, move, and get out of the elevator.” McLaughlin also denounced “rioters and sanctuary politicians who encourage individuals to interfere with arrests,” arguing they “are actively creating hostile environments that put officers, detainees and the public in harm’s way,” Mirror US reported.
Unresolved questions are central to this case: Was a warrant properly presented? Did the arrest violate Colorado law protecting courthouse attendees? Where is Aguilera now? Has ICE committed to reviewing its agents’ use of force around a newborn?
England said the agents did not clearly identify themselves before breaking the window and did not justify the vehicle stop. She reported receiving no documentation when she went to the ICE office to review the warrant referenced during the arrest. As of publication, the agency had not provided a public timeline or further details, according to Mirror US.
This viral video has brought nationwide attention to questions surrounding ICE’s enforcement tactics—especially regarding non-violent individuals and the safety of children—reinforcing calls for greater scrutiny of such operations.
