Madera said so-called “community defense rapid response” teams had alerted community members that an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vehicle was driving through Northwest Pasadena.
The rapid response team is made up of community members who monitor ICE activity in Pasadena.
According to Madera, he was documenting the ICE vehicle’s movements and alerting residents when the ICE agent drove to the Pasadena Police Department at 207 N. Garfield Avenue.
Madera followed, in his vehicle.
There, Madera said he was detained by Pasadena police. He was cited for misdemeanor obstructing a peace officer (California Penal Code Section 148(a)(1) and released, according to a document Madera provided to Pasadena Now.
He was not detained or arrested by ICE.
Madera said that Pasadena police did not ask him any questions about his immigration status.
“That ICE car was going all over Pasadena instilling fear, but we were right there… letting community know, documenting and keeping the peace,” he said.
Madera said police officers accused him of running red lights, a claim he denied.
He said he repeatedly asked why he was being detained and offered his license and insurance information before officers opened his car door “without my consent” and arrested him.
Community members gathered outside the station as Madera was held, chanting and documenting the encounter.
Speakers said the incident reinforced long-standing concerns that Pasadena police work with ICE despite public assurances to the contrary.
During multiple raids this past summer, there were no verified accounts of the Pasadena Police Department working with ICE.
On Wednesday, Madera stopped short of accusing the police department of working with immigration officials.
“The community feels that the police department is working with ICE. They’ve told us many times that they haven’t,” Madera said.
Organizers said they plan to demand explanations from city officials, including details about surveillance systems, police interactions with federal immigration agents, and the handling of ICE related alerts.
They also called for a series of community meetings and said they will advocate for Madera’s citation to be dismissed.
Speakers also renewed calls for an immigrant defense fund they said the city committed to last year but has not yet implemented.
“The community deserves to know,” one organizer said, adding that they expect city leaders, police officials and attorneys to attend upcoming meetings.
Madera said the community’s response underscored its unity.
“When they harm one of our communities, they harm all of us,” he said. “We don’t want hate and terror to come to Pasadena, and we want an explanation from the city and from the police department of what happened.”
Get our daily Pasadena newspaper in your email box. Free.
Get all the latest Pasadena news, more than 10 fresh stories daily, 7 days a week at 7 a.m.
