Danville police searching for missing 9-year-old boy with autism
Alex Duarte, who is believed to be around Camino Tassajara and Blackhawk Drive, was last seen in the area around 6:30 p.m. Saturday, the Danville Police Department said Sunday morning.
Alex, who is nonverbal, is Latino, stands 4 feet 11 inches, weighs about 70 pounds, and has black hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing gray shorts and a black T-shirt.
Several agencies are aiding in the search, police said. Anyone with information on Alex's disappearance should contact Danville police at 925-646-2441 immediately.
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2 hours ago
‘When the raids started, fear spread': LA Mayor Bass on Trump's deportation efforts
As President Donald Trump marks six months into his second term, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass told ABC News' "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz that the administration's immigration crackdown has not only sparked protests, but fear among the city's residents. 'Los Angeles is a city of immigrants -- 3.8 million people, and about 50% of our population is Latino. And so when the raids started, fear spread,' Bass said. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids started in Los Angeles early June, prompting demonstrations that at times turned violent. While Trump's deportation push was initially said to be centered around undocumented immigrants with criminal records, an ABC News analysis of new data shows that in recent weeks, the Trump administration has arrested an increasing number of migrants with no criminal convictions. Since then, farmers, business owners and immigrant advocacy groups have, like the mayor, said that many residents have been afraid to leave their homes for fear of deportation, affecting the workforce, food supply and the culture of the city. Bass said that the restaurant the interview took place in, located in the predominantly Latino Boyle Heights neighborhood of east Los Angeles, was typically bustling. But now, it — and the neighborhood overall — can feel like a ghost town. 'It's not just the deportation. It's the fear that sets in when raids occur, when people are snatched off the street,' Bass said. "Even people who are here legally, even people who are U.S. Citizens, have been detained. Immigrants who have their papers and were showing up for their annual immigration appointment were detained when they showed up doing exactly what they were supposed to be doing." She criticized ICE for agents for executing enforcement operations without their affiliation being prominently displayed. 'Masked men in unmarked cars, no license plate, no real uniforms, jumping out of cars with rifles, and snatching people off the street, leading a lot of people to think maybe kidnappings were taking place," Bass said. "How do you have masked men who then say, 'Well, we are federal officials,' with no identification?' Raddatz noted that administration says those agents do that because "there have been threats... [and] doxing." "We have a Los Angeles police department that has to deal with crime in this city every single day. And they're not masked. They stay here," Bass said. "The masked men parachute in, stay here for a while, and leave. And so you enter a profession like policing, like law enforcement? I'm sorry, I don't think you have a right to have a mask and snatch people off the street." Bass also touched on the continued presence of federal troops in the city. In response to those protests in early June, Trump deployed the National Guard and active-duty Marines to Los Angeles after protesters clashed with police. Some protestors threw rocks, fireworks and other objects at police, according to reports, before the arrival of federal troops. Trump signed a memorandum in June saying the National Guard was deployed to address lawlessness in Los Angeles. The California National Guard's 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team posted on X that its objective was to protect federal protesters and personnel. In her interview with ABC News, Bass denounced the violence as 'terrible,' but said it did not "warrant military intervention." 'It did not warrant the Marines coming into our city with basically no real mission, but just to show a force,' Bass said. While the number of National Guard members in the city has been cut roughly in half, Bass said that their objective has not changed since they first arrived — and argued they're presence is still not necessary. 'If you drive by our two federal buildings, you will see them standing out there. But there's nothing going on in those federal buildings. So in my opinion, we are misusing taxpayers' dollars, and we are misusing our troops,' she said. While she disagreed strongly with the Trump administration's immigration agenda, Bass said she appreciated the help the administration gave Los Angeles during the massive January wildfires. 'Well, I will heap praise on the administration for the first six months in Los Angeles with the fires. If you ask me, is there anything that they have done good in terms of immigration? I don't know. I don't think so,' she said. "I think that the viewpoint has been punitive, has been let's make it as miserable as possible so that these people don't come." Bass said that she is still willing to 'work' with the White House, noting both the Olympics and World Cup coming to the city over the next few years. "How does this end?" Raddatz asked. "How do you see the next six months, the next two years for immigrants in your city?"'Well, I am just hoping that this reign of terror ends. I'm hoping that the military leaves, because they were never needed here to begin with. I'm hoping that we can get back to normal. I'm hoping that the next time I come to this restaurant, that it will be filled, because people won't be afraid to come here,' Bass said.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘We're tired of this': Cicero residents demand action from town president after Latina aunt stopped by federal agents
Vanessa Mendoza, an early childhood educator in Cicero, was gathering materials for her classroom in late June when she paused to look at Facebook. What she saw shocked her. Posted on the social media site was a video of her aunt, Rocío, being pulled over by unidentified agents driving black vehicles who questioned her citizenship — despite her legal status to be in the United States. The agents did not specify why they pulled Rocío over or which agency they were affiliated with, Mendoza, 32, who grew up in Cicero, said at a news conference outside the town hall Thursday morning. After Rocío showed identification, she was not arrested or detained, her niece added. 'It was either a legal stop or maybe, I don't want to say, they were targeting her for being Latina,' she said. On Thursday, local officials and community members condemned 20-year Town President Larry Dominick for remarks he previously made about the immigrant community, especially as federal enforcement actions intensify under President Donald Trump. About 90% of Cicero's residents are Latino, a group that has been repeatedly targeted by the Trump administration. Rocío's interaction with the unidentified agents comes at a time of increased news and social media reports of citizens of Latino descent being stopped or detained. After a U.S. Army veteran was arrested during an immigration raid at a Southern California marijuana farm last week, representatives in Congress introduced legislation on Wednesday that would stop U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement from detaining and deporting U.S. citizens. Law-abiding residents aren't supposed to be arrested or detained, and there was no probable cause for Rocío to be pulled over, Mendoza said Thursday. She said her aunt is still shaken and won't go anywhere without her identification. Cicero has a complicated political history toward immigrants, said former U.S. Rep. Luis Guitiérrez, who used to represent the state's 4th Congressional District. Guitiérrez spoke strongly against Dominick, who he said has in recent years publicly spoken in a 'mean, nasty and violent' manner about immigrants. 'Stop destroying families that love each other,' he said. 'We're outraged. We're tired of this. Estamos indignados. Ya estamos cansado.' At Thursday's news conference, lifelong Cicero resident Diana Garcia played a recording of Dominick allegedly speaking at public town meetings. In the clip, Dominick can be heard lamenting former President Joe Biden's border policies and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson's approach to welcoming new migrants. 'You can't go anywhere without people selling candy, soda or water. And they don't even want to sell. Some of them just want money. The Venezuelans are robbing everybody. And what do we do to them? Nothing. It's disgusting,' Dominick was heard saying in the audio, which was also reported by the local newspaper Cicero Independiente from a Feb. 27, 2024, meeting. In a statement released late Thursday night, Cicero officials dismissed the accusations as complaints from Dominick's political opponents. The statement didn't address the comments Dominick allegedly made. Garcia asserted that Dominick has chosen to remain silent on the issue of immigration at a time when ICE has been 'tearing families apart.' 'Cicero deserves a leader right now. And we don't have one,' she said. At one point during the news conference, a woman passing by with a grocery bag stopped to stand in the back to listen to the speakers. She nodded her head in agreement. In late February, ahead of the town's municipal elections, Dominick was criticized by opposition candidate Esteban Rodriguez for his failure to advocate for the town to adopt sanctuary status. Dominick maintained Cicero's policy is to treat everyone, documented or in the country without legal permission, the same. He referred to a 'Safe Space Resolution' passed in 2008, which formalized a commitment not to use local law enforcement for immigration matters, preventing Cicero police from asking about immigration status or enforcing federal immigration laws. Meanwhile, Illinois is a 'sanctuary state' under the 2017 Illinois Trust Act, meaning it has rules prohibiting arresting or detaining someone solely due to immigration status. The tension escalated several weeks before the election, when Rodriguez had a rock thrown through his home windows in what he described as a scare tactic. He believed his windows were shattered in retaliation for his public probing of Dominick's immigration stance. Dominick's Cicero Voters Alliance, however, brushed off the incident as a 'political stunt' by Rodriguez to 'get attention and stir controversy.' Rodriguez — who received 43% of the vote for town president over the winter — was at the news conference Thursday, where those in attendance hand-delivered a letter to Dominick's office that requested 'immediate action' to declare Cicero a sanctuary city and stop any cooperation between local law enforcement officers and ICE. The group took an elevator to the town hall's third floor, where Dominick's office is located. The town president's office was closed and locked. 'It's because he's never here,' Rodriguez grumbled under his breath. They knocked and waited several minutes before deciding to slip the letter underneath the door. A Tribune reporter was able to enter the office later in the day and spoke to a receptionist, who directed all media inquiries to Dominick's email. The group also delivered a printed-out Freedom of Information Act request to the town of Cicero for all emails, text messages, letters, memos and notes between top town leaders and trustees including Dominick with several defamatory words and phrases. The request sought all communication from Jan. 20, when Trump was sworn into office, to the present. The goal, the group said Thursday, was to uncover the type of communication about immigration that might happen behind closed doors under Dominick's leadership. Mendoza, who wore a polka-dot dress and earrings in the shape of crayons, said that as an educator in Cicero, she is constantly answering questions from worried families who ask her what to do if ICE pulls them over. She tells them to not talk to anyone who they don't know and to keep their windows up. Ultimately, she said she isn't trying to work against Dominick, but to make sure everyone feels protected leaving their homes and driving through their own neighborhoods. 'Just make this a loving and safe place for everybody,' she urged the town leader. Solve the daily Crossword
Politico
a day ago
- Politico
‘It's like a game of Whac-A-Mole': How Trump's ICE raids knocked Los Angeles to its knees
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, contested reports that most people detained did not have a criminal record. She said the government's operations have arrested 'drug traffickers, MS-13 gang members, convicted rapists, convicted murderers — people you would not want to be your neighbors. And yet, Karen Bass, instead of thanking law enforcement, continues to demonize them and attack them.' The fear permeating Latino life has added resonance for Bass; her late ex-husband was Mexican American and many family members, including her late daughter, her step-children and grandchildren, have Latino heritage. 'So yes, it impacts me personally, because I know that all Latinos are suspect now, anybody that looks Latino,' Bass said, pointing to border czar Tom Homan's comments that 'physical appearance' was sufficient for federal authorities to detain someone. He later said appearance could not be the sole reason for suspicion. But the federal judge who blocked the roving immigration raids in Los Angeles said officials were relying on improper factors, such as race, occupation and speaking with an accent, during their operations. McLaughlin said it was a 'convenient and disgusting smear to say that law enforcement targets based on skin color. It is about it is about legal status, that everything and criminality. That's what we're focused on.' Beyond the family bonds, Bass said, leaning into immigrant rights is 'fundamentally who I am' — a culmination of years of community activism, of anti-apartheid advocacy, of collaborations between Black and Latino communities in the 1980s and 1990s. 'It's not because it's politically in. It's not because of some calculation of what happened in the first part of the year,' she said. 'This is an issue that has been fundamental to me for my entire adult life.' Loathe as Bass is to make comparisons to her handling of the fires, the contrast is notable, even to her closest allies. The mayor was hamstrung from the start of the blazes, when she was out of the country, and she failed to regain control of the narrative upon her return. This time, Bass has ramped up her media presence; during her brief stop at El Chapulín, she squeezed in two Zoom interviews with Spanish-language media, and she has been a regular staple on national cable. 'She is really trying to paint a different picture of what is going on here — not letting Breitbart and Fox tell the story,' said Courtni Pugh, a senior adviser for Bass' political operation. 'We really tried very hard to put a human face on the toll.' Onlookers watch as federal agents with US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) ride on an armored vehicle driving slowly down Wilshire Boulevard near MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, California, on July 7, 2025. | Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images When militarized federal agents, including officials on horseback, descended onto MacArthur Park in the heart of downtown in an intimidating though largely theatrical display, Bass rerouted from a ceremony marking the six-month anniversary of the fires to the scene, demanding to speak to whoever was in charge.
