Chu demands accountability after two ICE killings, backs Pasadena vigils
U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-Pasadena, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Alhambra, and the west San Gabriel Valley) this week backed peaceful demonstrations held in Pasadena over the weekend, where community members gathered to demand justice and accountability for the deaths of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo and Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, both killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in separate incidents earlier this month.
Salgado Araujo, a father of three U.S. citizens and a 35-year U.S. resident, was fatally shot July 7 by an ICE agent in Houston after being stopped while driving to work in an unmarked ICE vehicle stop; he was not the target of the operation. ICE has alleged he “weaponized” his vehicle, a claim neither the agency nor the Department of Homeland Security has substantiated with publicly released evidence.
Six days later, ICE fatally shot 25-year-old Colombian national Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, after he attempted to flee during an enforcement operation that was not targeting him; video footage shows officers handcuffing Guerrero after he had already been shot in the head.
“It is abhorrent, unconscionable, and utterly indefensible that with each passing week, another family is mourning a loved one who never came home from an encounter with ICE,” said Chu. “Instead of reining in an agency plagued by violence, abuse, and a staggering lack of accountability, the Trump Administration and Republicans have handed ICE hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars to expand the violent, cruel operations that are terrorizing immigrant communities.”
Chu said she joined nearly 200 Democratic colleagues in demanding an independent investigation into both deaths. Her statement points to more than a decade of prior advocacy on ICE oversight, including repeated calls to close the Adelanto ICE Processing Center over what she has described as appalling conditions, medical neglect, and preventable deaths, along with past demands for investigations into fatal ICE shootings.
“We will not look away. We will not be intimidated into silence,” Chu said. “And we will never stop fighting until every family can live without fear that an encounter with ICE could end in detention, tragedy, or death.”
Pérez condemns antisemitic vandalism at Pasadena synagogue’s healing mural
State Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez (D-Pasadena, Alhambra, Altadena, Glendale, Arcadia, Monrovia) issued a statement condemning fresh antisemitic vandalism discovered last week at the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center, where a community mural created to promote healing after an earlier hate crime was defaced with swastikas and the message “Zionism is not welcome.”
The mural, completed May 2, was created in response to a January antisemitic attack on the synagogue and stood on one of the congregation’s few remaining walls after its campus was destroyed in the Eaton Fire.
“It is truly disturbing and particularly cruel to spread hate and inflict fresh pain on the congregation of the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center,” said Pérez. “The Eaton Fire destroyed the physical structure of this community, but their faith, love and generosity were unscathed. I am deeply concerned by this latest attack and the person or people responsible must be held accountable.”
Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo said the vandalism would ultimately backfire on whoever was responsible, arguing that acts of hate tend to draw communities closer rather than divide them.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is investigating the vandalism as a hate crime.
Friedman secures $1M for Glendale public safety cameras
U.S. Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Burbank, Glendale, West Hollywood, and parts of Los Angeles and Pasadena) announced a $1,031,000 federal investment yesterday to expand and modernize Glendale’s Real Time Information Center, funding city officials say will nearly double the city’s public safety camera coverage ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.
The investment will grow Glendale’s public camera network from 44 to between 90 and 100 cameras, using the city’s existing team of four specialists rather than adding new staff.
“Glendale came to me with a real need, I made it a priority, and I fought in Washington to get it done,” said Friedman. “Keeping our neighborhoods safe should never depend on the size of a city’s budget. This is a million dollars to help our officers respond faster, prevent crime, and protect our families, and not a cent of it comes out of the pockets of Glendale taxpayers.”
Glendale Police Chief Robert Williams said the city’s existing real-time intelligence center has already helped investigators solve murders, violent crimes, and residential burglaries by supplying leads that might otherwise be unavailable. Glendale Mayor Ardy Kassakhian credited Friedman’s background in local and state government for her responsiveness to the city’s request.
The announcement marks the third Olympics-related federal investment Friedman has secured for her district this year, following a $1,092,000 award in April to replace century-old water and wastewater systems at the Rose Bowl and a $500,000 investment in July for shade, seating, and real-time arrival information at Metro bus stops and Metrolink stations across the district.
Bass, Waters deliver 1,066 air conditioners to public housing residents
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) announced yesterday the installation of 1,066 energy-efficient air-conditioning units at Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA)properties, marking a major milestone in her Climate Action Plan’s push to protect residents from extreme heat.
The announcement was made at Nickerson Gardens, where Bass was joined by U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Inglewood, Hawthorne, Gardena, Watts, South Los Angeles), along with leaders from HACLA and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. The units are being installed at Nickerson Gardens, Imperial Courts, Gonzaque Village, and Jordan Downs, all within Waters’ district.
“As temperatures continue to rise across Los Angeles, protecting residents from extreme heat is both a public health priority and a climate priority,” said Bass. “This investment will help families stay safe, lower their energy bills, and improve residents’ quality of life. That’s what our Climate Action Plan is about — delivering practical solutions that improve people’s lives today while building a healthier and more resilient Los Angeles for generations to come.”
Waters said she secured more than $4 million in federal Community Project funding to launch the initiative across the four public housing communities in her district. The project is part of the city’s Heat Mitigation Home Improvement Program, which leverages rebates from LADWP’s Cool LA initiative to purchase energy-efficient air conditioning units in bulk, lowering costs and speeding up installation across HACLA properties.
“I am so pleased to have been able to assist Mayor Karen Bass and HACLA with the installation of air conditioners for public housing residents as part of the City of Los Angeles’ Climate Action Plan,” said Waters. “I am especially pleased that I was able to secure more than $4 million in federal Community Project funding to jumpstart this initiative.”
City officials said the program is designed to prioritize communities that have historically experienced the greatest environmental burdens, ensuring they are among the first to benefit from climate resilience investments as extreme heat events become more frequent.
