/ / USA: RELEASE JOURNALIST SHOT AND DETAINED BY ICE

USA: RELEASE JOURNALIST SHOT AND DETAINED BY ICE

UA: 111.26

Only 77 days left to join us and support this case!

Richard Parias is a citizen journalist who reports on issues in Los Angeles, California, including immigration enforcement. On October 21, 2025, he was driving away from his home when masked immigration agents surrounded his car with their vehicles and shot him in the arm. He has been detained at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center for nearly a year with persistent severe pain from the gunshot wound and is not receiving adequate medical care.

Call for Richard’s immediate release from detention for immediate medical attention and for the protection of his right to free expression.

PLEASE TAKE ACTION AS SOON AS POSSIBLE UNTIL: January 31, 2027

Here is how you can take action:

Send a letter to Thomas Giles, ICE Field Office Director
Send a message to Thomas Giles, ICE Field Office Director using our email-writing tool
Post on social media
Print and share the paper petition for this UA

Scroll down to Step 1 and Step 2 to access the full Urgent Action appeal and sample letter, and U.S.P.S. mailing address (if available).

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Step 1

READ THE FULL URGENT ACTION

Enter your email address and zip code to get the sample letter to send to government officials.

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You can now write a letter in your own words or download the sample below as a guide.

Remember to send your letter by January 31, 2027.

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Sample Letter

Dear Field Office Director Giles,

I call for the release of citizen journalist, Carlitos Ricardo Parias Ramales (A#246-059-603). I am concerned that Mr. Parias was targeted by ICE due to his work as a citizen journalist.

In October 2025, masked federal immigration agents shot and critically injured Mr. Parias while attempting to arrest him outside his home for immigration purposes. While in the hospital, he was subsequently charged with assault for what transpired during his arrest and taken into U.S. Marshals custody—despite needing ongoing medical care. In December, a federal judge dismissed the indictment against Mr. Parias for the assault charge after the government failed to adhere to his constitutional rights to a fair trial. However, by then, he had already been transferred to ICE custody.

He is detained inside the cruel and abusive Adelanto ICE Processing Center, where four people have died since September 2025. ICE continues to detain him under the Trump Administration’s no bond policy for people who entered without inspection. However, Mr. Parias is detained in the jurisdiction where there is an injunction on that policy—making his detention both arbitrary and unlawful. As a result of being denied adequate medical care, Mr. Parias continues to suffer pain and swelling from the gunshot wound. Nevertheless, he continues to report and sound the alarm on the treatment and care of people detained inside Adelanto, including the presence of worms in the drinking water. His arrest and detention are part of a broader erosion of human rights in the United States, including the right to free expression, both inside detention and out.

I urge you to immediately release Mr. Parias from detention to receive critical medical attention and return to his community where he can continue to exercise his right to freedom of expression.

Yours sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]

Step 2

Send your message

Mail your letter to the government officials listed below. You can also email, fax, call, or post about them on social media.

Send your letter to:

Thomas Giles, ICE Field Office Director

300 North Los Angeles St., Room 7631

Los Angeles, CA 90012

USA

[email protected]

When writing your letter, don’t forget to be factual, brief, and show respect. See more letter writing tips and emails, or organize and host a letter writing party.

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