Carlos Jimenez is seeking more than $25 million over an Oct. 30, 2025, shooting by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Ontario, California, alleging excessive force and later interference with his medical care.
Jimenez filed the suit Nov. 6 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The docket lists the United States of America, ICE officer Eusebio Ortiz, S. Cosey, N. Jimenez and County of San Bernardino as defendants.
The complaint says Jimenez approached agents to warn that children would soon gather at a nearby school bus stop. It says officers’ vehicles blocked his car as he attempted a three-point turn, and alleges Ortiz threatened and shot him in the back and right shoulder.
The lawsuit also accuses Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents of pursuing Jimenez to a hospital and interrupting his treatment. The filing says fragments from the shooting remain lodged near his lung.
A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson gave a different account at the time, saying Jimenez reversed toward officers and the ICE agent fired defensive shots. A federal criminal complaint separately alleged that Jimenez accelerated backward toward an officer.
The Guardian reported that federal prosecutors later charged Jimenez with assaulting a federal officer using a deadly or dangerous weapon. The Los Angeles Times reported the charge was dismissed last week after Jimenez completed a diversion agreement. Justice Department spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy told the newspaper prosecutors asked the court to dismiss the case after Jimenez met the agreement’s conditions.
Jimenez’s civil lawsuit alleges excessive force, false arrest and malicious prosecution. The claims have not been decided by a court.
