ICE officer placed on leave after video shows woman slammed at NYC courthouse

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer was placed on leave after a video surfaced Thursday that appears to show a plainclothes agent slamming a woman to the floor outside a New York City courthouse after she and her family had left an asylum hearing. The woman, Monica Moreta-Galarza, and her relatives were in the lobby area when the confrontation began, according to the footage and statements from witnesses.

Video shows the woman pleading in Spanish with the agent, at one point asking him to "Please take me, too." The agent responds with a repeated "adios" and at one moment appears to grab her arm. She pulls back, then, after brushing against him, he hurls her backward, slamming her into the opposite wall. He continues to push her down the hall as she raises her hands in a gesture of compliance. The man then seems to shove her to the floor, where she screams. Two small children, in blue jeans and white shirts, rush to the front of the scrum as the ICE agent yells "cállase!".

ProPublica reporter Till Eckert captured the latter portion on video. Moreta-Galarza was taken to a hospital; after she was discharged, she told reporters that she thought officers in the United States were supposed to be better. "Over [in Ecuador], they beat us there too," she said in Spanish. "I didn’t think I’d come here to the United States and the same thing would happen to me." (Eckert provided ongoing updates in a thread accompanying the footage.)

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander said he was in a nearby courtroom when the agents detained the woman’s husband in front of the family after the hearing, and that the officers neither gave a reason nor presented a warrant. "He was ripped out of her arms right in front of the family," Lander told CBS New York. "We can disagree on immigration policy, but you can’t watch that video and think that that’s how you want United States law enforcement officials treating human beings."

In an emailed statement to HuffPost, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the officer’s conduct "unacceptable" and said he’s been relieved of current duties pending a full investigation. The department said it would review the incident as part of standard procedures for officer safety and accountability. The event has intensified scrutiny of ICE operations and how officers enforce immigration rules at civilian courthouses.

Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), whose district includes the courthouse, said the woman and her two young children sought shelter in his office after the incident, which he called "one example of too many where we have these secret police officers attacking our communities with excessive violence, and they just think they can do it with impunity because nobody is holding them accountable." Goldman urged continued oversight and accountability for federal immigration enforcement.

The episode underscores ongoing tensions surrounding immigration policy and law enforcement at federal facilities. Officials said the investigation will determine what happened, how it happened, and whether any procedures were violated. As the department conducts its inquiry, public officials and advocates are calling for clear standards and heightened transparency in responses to encounters with asylum-seekers and families at courthouses.