Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva says she’s still seeking answers about a protest against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Tucson where federal agents used chemical agents like pepper spray.
ICE says its investigative wing Homeland Security Investigations partnered with the IRS and other federal agencies to execute 16 federal search warrants across southern Arizona on Dec. 5, as part of a “yearslong investigation into immigration and tax violations.”
Businesses and homes were targeted, including the west Tucson location of Taco Giro. Protesters gathered at the local restaurant that morning and tried to stop ICE vehicles from leaving.
Video shows federal agents shooting pepper spray and plumes of smoke rising among the crowd.
Grijalva says she was hit alongside local journalists and protesters while trying to get information about the raid — and Arizona’s Democratic delegation in DC is now calling for an investigation.
“We requested that House and Senate Homeland Security committees investigate this troubling pattern of abusive conduct, obstruction of independent journalism and Congressional oversight,” she said. “ICE is really emboldened to do whatever they want to do. There are no consequences, or apparently they think there are no consequences.”
In a Dec. 12 letter, Grijalva, Rep. Yassamin Ansari and Sens. Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego ask Congress to investigate DHS’s use of force policies, the agency’s actions in Tucson on Dec. 5, and hold a public hearing about the impact to communities and journalists.
An ICE spokesperson said 46 Mexican nationals were arrested Dec. 5 as part of the operation. Those arrested currently face administration immigration violations, according to the agency, which are civil violations.
Neither ICE nor DHS responded to questions about the use of pepper spray, but, according to the AP, DHS has refuted Grijalva’s account of the Dec. 5 events and described the crowd as a “mob.”
ICE is a lawless agency under this Administration – operating with no transparency, no accountability, and open disregard for basic due process.
— Rep. Adelita Grijalva (@Rep_Grijalva) December 5, 2025
No family in our community should live in fear, and I will not rest until we get clear answers and accountability. pic.twitter.com/Z2mUuRxHuX
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