Mother speaks out after teen with disabilities mistakenly arrested in immigration raid

Amna Nawaz:

As the Trump administration intensifies its crackdown on immigration, an increasing number of U.S. citizens are finding themselves caught up in the sweeping actions.

A recent investigation by ProPublica reveals that more than 170 American citizens have been detained by immigration agents during the first nine months of this push.

Our own Liz Landers recently spoke with the mother of one of these individuals.

Liz Landers:

A 15-year-old boy with disabilities was handcuffed outside of a Los Angeles high school in August after federal immigration agents mistakenly identified him as a suspect. The boy was waiting in a car with his mother while his sister registered for classes inside.

The family is suing the Trump administration, alleging racial profiling, false arrest and assault. Federal officials have denied any wrongdoing and say they were conducting a targeted operation.

For more on what happened that day and why the family is taking legal action, we are now joined by Andreina Mejia, the boy's mother.

Andreina, walk us through what happened that day. What happened when federal agents approached your car?

Andreina Mejia, Mother of Detained American Child: I was on the phone, and something told me to look up, when I just seen this white truck approaching my car, and it looked like coming directly to me, where I'm like, oh, my God, did they lose control? Like, he's going to hit my car.

And I just seen these two men get off from the front pointing their guns at me and my son, like, actually at our car. I had my window a little bit down. They just came one from my side, the other one from my son's side, and they just opened our doors. They took me out. They took my son out.

All I remember me telling my son is like: "Don't make any movement. Just follow instructions," just because, in my mind, I'm like, OK, they're pointing guns. If they see my son trying to reach for something, I don't know if they're going to shoot.

So I was trying to maintain him calm. And after that, I'm just seeing that they pulled him out. And I'm like: "What's going on?"

The guy's like; "Oh, like, we're looking for somebody and your son fits that description."

So, I’m like:

"I mean, who are you guys looking for?" And they showed me a picture. And I'm like: "That's not my son. Like, my son is with me at all times."

So, after that, they let my son come towards me. As my son was approaching me,he started crying and just hugged me. And I didn't really appreciate the comment that the guy did where he just called my son: "Oh, we confuse you with somebody else, but just look at the bright side. Like, you're going to have an exciting story to tell your friends when you go back to school."

I just looked at him. And, as a mom, it hurt me, because I was just thinking, there's nothing exciting about getting guns pointed at you.

Liz Landers:

Walk me through what it was like to hear a law enforcement officer say to you and your child that you would have an exciting story to share after they had drawn their weapons towards you?

Andreina Mejia:

I was really upset just because, like I said, there's nothing exciting about that, and especially how can you be approaching somebody without first asking, oh, let me see an identification to see who you are?

I mean, you just can't be targeting people just because, oh, you look like that person or because you guys got the same color skin. Yes, my son is a bit darker than me, but especially a minor. I mean, I'm the mom. You could approach me and be like, oh, we're looking for somebody. What's your son's name? I would have gave it to you.

Liz Landers:

How did your son react? And you have said that he is a student with disabilities. How did that shape how he understands what happened that day?

Andreina Mejia:

Hold on. I just hate talking about it, because I get all the emotional.

Well, he completely doesn't understand. Like, the phase that he had of confusion, it was just like, I guess he was just trying to wrap his head on, like, what's going on? I mean, it's not an everyday thing that somebody just randomly gets guns pointed at them, like, especially when you're not doing anything.

I was just trying to explain it to him to the best of my ability, just because I know, if somebody were to ask him something, he won't really understand what you guys are asking him. He has this thing where he always looks at me to try to be like, OK, mom, explain it to me in a way where I know I'm going to understand.

Even though he's 15, his brain is pretty much kind of like a 8- or 9-year-old.

Liz Landers:

Customs and Border Protection said in a statement to the "News Hour" that — quote — "Agents were conducting a targeted operation on criminal illegal alien Cristian Alexander Vasquez-Alvarenga, a Salvadorian national and suspected MS-13 pledge with prior criminal convictions in the broader vicinity of Arleta."

The administration here is denying wrongdoing and saying that this was simply a case of mistaken identity during a targeted operation. What is your response to that?

Andreina Mejia:

I mean, they're wrong for that because, number one, for my son being a special kid, where in their right mind do they think that he's going to be gang-affiliated?

Second, it's, like I said, my son doesn't need my side. And that's for the same reason, because my son does not look his age. He looks older. I don't want people to be thinking, no, no, he's not certain age. He's an older person. Maybe she's lying.

So for — when I heard that, that they were looking for this person and that he was apparently Salvadorian, I'm not — we're not Salvadorians. At this point, it's like, what now? Who's going to help my son deal with a situation where there's time still that it's hard for me as his mom to wake him up in the morning to go to school?

Sometimes, he doesn't want to go to school. Sometimes, he has good days. Sometimes, he has bad days. Sometimes, he says he can't sleep. Right now is a little bit more calmer, but in the beginning, when it was recent, I would be driving and just like making sure he was OK and, out of nowhere, he would just get emotional.

So I will pull over and I'm like: "What's going on?"

And he's just like: "Oh, now I don't feel safe, because now I feel that whenever we're in the street, I have to look at my surroundings."

Liz Landers:

What message do you have for federal officials?

Andreina Mejia:

They just need to be more professional and not just target innocent people.

All this that they're doing is unacceptable. And just I see all these different videos, and it breaks my heart, just because I'm like, what world are we living in now? Like, even to me that I go out and, even though I'm born here, I'm even scared sometimes to go, because I'm like, what about them mistaking me by somebody that doesn't have papers, and I tell them I do, and they don't care, and they still try to grab me in a way where they could hurt me?

Liz Landers:

You have filed a lawsuit. What is next for you in this incident?

Andreina Mejia:

I just want justice, and I just want them to take accountability for what they did, because, like I said, before all this happened, I feel that my son was a bit different.

And now, with this whole situation, it's like I said. He has this good moment. He has this bad. And he just tells me like: "No, I don't want to go to school." And, oh, he's going to go to school. We're going to get through this. And me, as his mom and his protector, I mean, I'm always going to make sure that he's good.

Liz Landers:

Thank you so much for joining us today, for sharing your story and your son's story. We really appreciate it. Thank you.

Andreina Mejia:

Thank you.