New video evidence released by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California captures federal immigration officers using racial slurs to describe Latino individuals during traffic stops, the group said in a court filing aimed at blocking what it calls racially discriminatory enforcement.
The videos, part of a motion in the Vasquez Perdomo v. Mullin case, include body-camera footage from a June 2025 raid at a Home Depot in Hollywood during a wave of Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations across Los Angeles. In one clip, an officer can be heard saying, “There was a guy, I’m pretty sure he’s wet. He was just sitting in that minivan.” Another officer responds, “Yeah, just plug us in where you see some tonks.”
The term “wet” is a shorthand for the racial slur “wetback,” historically used against Mexican and other Latino immigrants who crossed the Rio Grande. “Tonk” derives from the sound of a flashlight striking a migrant’s head, according to reports.
In a separate video from the same month, an officer is heard lamenting, “One tonk f---ing got away, dude,” before asking, “How do you turn off the camera?” Another clip from August 6 shows Border Patrol agents pointing to a backpack and asking, “Who’s backpack is that? Tonk’s backpack?”
The ACLU SoCal argues the footage contradicts the government’s account of its enforcement operations and shows agents relied on race and ethnicity in deciding whom to stop. The filing seeks to halt suspicionless stops that the group says violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments. The case comes amid broader political debate over immigration policy.
Mayra Joachín, the ACLU SoCal’s deputy director of immigrants’ rights, called the evidence “shocking to the conscience.” She said, “Evidence gathered from the government has confirmed what our communities have known all along: immigration officers are flagrantly violating the law by detaining people without justification and often primarily because of the color of their skin.”
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson dismissed the allegations, telling The Hill that officers “are focused on protecting the American people — not entertaining performative outrage.” The spokesperson added, “Where is the media’s outrage for Angel families who lost a loved one to illegal alien crime?”
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, a plaintiff in the case, condemned the videos. Executive director Angelica Salas said, “Our communities have been denouncing foul play from day one. The evidence doesn’t lie: these arrests were never about safety, they were about skin color. We repudiate this racial profiling in the strongest terms.”
The ACLU’s filing comes as several Democratic states sue the Trump administration over conditions attached to FEMA grants, and as the administration considers new bond requirements for green card applicants in a broader crackdown on immigration.
