There are two very different accounts of what happened during an immigration operation on April 7 in the San Joaquin Valley, in which ICE agents fired multiple shots at a Salvadoran man, sending him to the hospital.
According to Todd Lyons, acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, federal agents shot Carlos Iván Mendoza Hernández, 36, after he “armed his car in an attempt to run over a police officer.”
According to Hernández’s attorney, Patrick Kolasinski, and at least one eyewitness, the police fired their guns first, prompting a panicked Hernández to try to drive away.
Now, it will be up to the judge to sort things out.
A judge indicted Hernández on Thursday on two counts of assault on a public official with a dangerous weapon and one count of vandalizing government property for the incident in the town of Patterson.
Kolasinski said in a statement Friday that he would not comment on the details because the case is still ongoing and “it is time for the judicial process to take its course.”
“We have faith in the court system and we believe that, once all the evidence is put before an impartial judge, Carlos will be freed,” Kolasinski said. “To do that, we look forward to our day in court.”
Four immigration officials conducted an April 7 operation to arrest Hernández because he is in the US illegally, according to the US Department of Justice. They made a traffic stop near the Interstate 5 freeway in Stanislaus County and ordered Hernández to get out of the car, but he refused to comply, prosecutors said.
He is accused of driving forward and hitting the agent with his car before reversing immediately and hitting a law enforcement vehicle parked behind him. He then drove straight toward federal agents, crossed the median and drove the wrong way on the road, prosecutors said.
“Due to this incident, and due to the movement of the car, the police took out their guns from the car and hit Mendoza Hernandez several times,” the prosecutors said in the charges against them.
He was taken to the hospital and treated there for six days before he received medical clearance to be released.
KCRA 3, A Sacramento-area television station obtained video of the incident showing federal officials surrounding a black hatchback that was wedged between two unmarked vehicles on Del Puerto Canyon Road.
The video shows the driver backing up with the front passenger door open and hitting the truck. At least three agents have their guns. The car then moved forward, apparently trying to make a U-turn, narrowly missing two policemen, who opened fire.
Kolasinski told The Times last month that his client was adamant that he would be fired before moving his car.
“He was clear about this, that he retreated because he was trying to escape because he was shot,” said Kolasinski.
After the shooting, the agents removed Hernández’s clothes and left him handcuffed and sitting naked on the side of the road, according to Kolasinski.
The incident marked the sixth shooting involving federal immigration agents in California since August 2025.
If convicted as charged, Hernández faces up to 20 years on each count of assault and 10 years on the vandalism count.
“However, any sentence will be determined at the court’s discretion after consideration of any applicable legal factors and federal sentencing guidelines, which take into account the various factors,” prosecutors said.
Shortly after this incident, Lyons alleged in a statement to X that the agents targeted Hernández because he is a member of the 18th Street Gang wanted in El Salvador for questioning in connection with the murder.
Kolasinski disputed this, saying his client was not a gang member and that, while Hernández was accused of the murder in El Salvador, he was acquitted of any charges related to that case.
The case did not refer to any allegations that they were gang members or related to the murder. Hernández is scheduled to be arraigned Monday on federal charges.
