Jail staff intervened after suspected U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents burst into a secure area of the San Luis Obispo County Jail on Sunday to arrest an inmate, witnesses said.
At 9 a.m., about 40 protesters from the nonprofit group Indivisible had gathered at the corner of Highway 1 and Kansas Avenue to protest ICE when three familiar vehicles pulled into the prison parking lot.
Volunteers told the Tribune that 805 UndocuFund volunteers saw the vehicles at ICE operations sites and while entering and exiting the Santa Maria ICE facility. ICE did not respond to a request for comment about the incident.
According to protesters at the scene, four men got out of the car. They were wearing masks, sunglasses and vests with the word “Police” written on them. They filed into the prison lobby at 9:15 a.m. along with a handful of protesters and 805 UndocuFund rapid response personnel.
A protester named Del and a rapid responder named CJ said they entered the lobby with ICE agents. Del and CJ declined to give their last names to the Tribune for fear of retaliation.
Derr told the Tribune that ICE agents stood near the large blue jail release door that separates the jail from the lobby.
Del said she heard the door “click” as she prepared for an inmate to walk out.
“Whenever that blue door is about to open and we’re not sure who’s going to come out of that door — a brown person or a white person — that’s when things escalate,” she said.
Del said she has seen ICE agents treat white people and people of color differently. If white people walked out of the jail, the police would step aside and let them pass. She said if people of color walk out of jail, ICE will pounce on them.
When the prison doors opened, protesters shouted “La migra está aquí,” or “ICE is coming,” to warn inmates.
The man then walked into the lobby and police handcuffed him without showing a warrant or identifying himself, Derr said. She said police then escorted him to a car in the parking lot and closed the door.
CJ agrees with Del.
“It’s heartbreaking,” Derr told the Tribune. “It feels cruel. It makes me angry that we allowed this to happen in a public place under the nose of a peace officer without due process, without a warrant being presented.”
On December 14, 2025, ICE agents grabbed protester Sue M. and pushed her away from the prison release door.
Alleged ICE agent shoved protester
Witnesses told the Tribune that the three officers then returned to the lobby, where about 20 protesters from Indivisible and 805 UndocuFund had gathered.
Indivisible protester Sue M. said tensions rose in the room as police and activists argued with each other. She declined to give her full name for fear of reprisal.
Sue and CJ said they positioned themselves near the prison release door and put up signs that read “ICE está en la carcel,” which means “ICE is in prison.” The logo also includes 805 UndocuFund’s rapid response hotline number, 805-870-8855.
The pair said they planned to show the inmate a hand signal as a warning before he entered the hall.
The police then told Sue to leave if the door opened, and she said she told them she would. She said she heard a click on the interior door and started to walk away, but two officers grabbed her arms and another pushed her back, causing her to stumble forward.
CJ said the officer then ordered her to move aside and she said, “Yeah, I’m leaving,” and started walking away. She said an officer then pushed her.
“He had a gun, pepper spray, a Taser, a baton – and I’m a 4-foot-11 girl,” CJ said. “I don’t know why he felt the need to do this.”
Then, a white man walked out of the prison release door. According to CJ, Del and Sue, the policeman stepped aside so he could walk out of the lobby. This happened twice, they said.
Protester Sue M. holds a sign in the prison lobby warning inmates that ICE agents are waiting there on December 14, 2025.
Suspected ICE agents rush to parts of prison
The video showed that around 10:30 a.m., the inner door clicked again, and protesters shouted “ICE está aqui” as the door opened.
805 UndocuFund shared the video with the Tribune to corroborate the story, but the Tribune will not publish the video to
Protect the identity of prisoners.
Two suspected ICE agents immediately entered a secure area of the prison where the inmates were located. The video shows the non-white inmate begin walking backwards before agents grab him and pin him against a wall.
Prison staff then positioned themselves between police and inmates.
Police returned to the lobby and jail staff closed the blue door, but the man did not leave the jail.
Eventually, the alleged ICE agents left the jail, according to CJ, Del and Sue.
The Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident, spokesman Tony Cipolla said Tuesday.
“Our understanding is that a confrontation occurred in the lobby between protesters and ICE agents, and we are investigating exactly what happened,” he said in a statement. “At this time, we will not be making any further comment until we receive more information about the incident.”