California teachers have launched patrols to spot ICE agents near Los Angeles schools.
Lupe Carrasco Cardona, an ethics teacher at Los Angeles Unified School District, revealed she was among educators prowling for federal immigration enforcement employees in the city. She took CBS on a ride-along with her group “Unión del Barrio,” where she made a show of spotting a Ford Explorer that turned out to belong to a civilian.
During the footage outside Edward R. Roybal Learning Center in downtown LA, the patrol found no ICE agents despite some false alarms. In the clip, Cardona drives past the nondescript Ford and told her colleague: “Remember to take photos, OK?”
Cardona claimed the patrol will not engage with ICE agents or act if they spot any, and was only there to report any federal activity. She said she looks for vehicles with tinted windows or ones that are double-parked, while responding to tips about agents from members of the public.
“We don’t intercept. We don’t engage with them. We’re just alerting the community,” she said.
Another teacher who was on the ride-along said: “Tinted windows, that is a red flag. We’re looking for double-parked like this one; that would be a red flag.”
She claimed, without providing further details, that members of the local community planned their day around her group’s reports.
Later in the footage Cardona is seen at the school gates, where United Teachers Los Angeles chapter chair Jon Paul Arciniega claimed her operations were “really beautiful.”
“It’s been really beautiful to witness teachers devoting their own personal time to just watching the neighborhood and making sure that it’s safe,” he said. “And it’s been really beneficial for the students and the families to see that the teachers are out here for them.”
But social media users were less impressed by the stunt, with some asking why taxpayer-funded teachers were trying to protect those who were in the country illegally. Libs of TikTok wrote on X: “Los Angeles teachers are patrolling the area around schools for ICE activity to warn illegals so they can evade ICE. They only reason they would do this is if @LASchools is full of illegals.. @ICEgov should definitely visit LA Schools. Why are we paying for illegals’ education?!”
Another social media user wrote: “Imagine if those people cared this much about crime? I don’t see these idiots patrolling city parks looking for thieves, prostitutes, and drug dealers.”
A third added: “Why are we paying teachers to drive around and look for ice agents? Make it make sense.”
LAUSD returned to school this week amid a turbulent time for students, with cuts and layoffs looming. The nation’s second-largest school district could run out of cash by 2027 and has been told by the LA County Office of Education to overhaul its budget. County Superintendent Debra Duardo issued LAUSD a rare “Lack of Going Concern” determination on July 2, warning the district may not be able to meet its financial obligations during the 2027-28 and 2028-29 school years.
In the viral moment that sparked broader patrol organizing, the Trump administration in January 2025 rescinded a policy that had prohibited immigration enforcement near or in schools, hospitals and places of worship. The change sparked concern among teachers, principals and superintendents that parents would keep students home out of fear. California legislators responded with laws meant to limit immigration enforcement in schools, requiring agents to obtain a warrant signed by a judge to enter schools and for schools to notify parents, staff and students if ICE agents are on campus. The patrols represent one community response to this shifted federal policy.
Earlier this week ICE nabbed a Canadian fugitive who was able to live in California for 30 years despite being wanted for sexually assaulting a child in his home country. Charles Peter Billone, 64, was arrested by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations office in San Francisco after years on the run.