Off-Duty ICE Agent Shot, Arrested After Alleged Attack on Fresno Residents

A 32-year-old Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent was shot and arrested early Friday morning after Fresno police say he physically assaulted a father and daughter at their home near East Dudley Avenue and North Broadway Street.

David Gonzalez, a Texas resident working for ICE, was found asleep on a resident’s front lawn around 3:20 a.m., according to a Fresno Police Department news release. When the homeowner’s 72-year-old father attempted to send him away, Gonzalez “appeared intoxicated and agitated” and “physically assaulted” the father, forcing him to the ground and causing several injuries, police said.

Police said Gonzalez also attacked the daughter when she tried to intervene. The father, fearing for his and his daughter’s safety, drew a legally possessed firearm and fired one shot at Gonzalez, hitting him in the midsection.

An off-duty police officer who is the daughter’s boyfriend arrived at the scene shortly after and handcuffed Gonzalez, according to police. Gonzalez was transported to a hospital for treatment and remains in Fresno police custody.

Gonzalez was arrested on suspicion of battery likely to cause great bodily injury, felony vandalism, and battery. The father is not facing any criminal charges, police said.

Police confirmed Gonzalez was off duty and alone at the time of the incident. The department has not determined why he was in the area. ICE has been in contact with Fresno police to begin a personnel investigation, according to the release.

The Breakdown

• David Gonzalez, 32, an ICE agent from Texas, was arrested around 3:20 a.m. Friday near East Dudley Avenue and North Broadway Street
• Police say he was found asleep on a resident’s lawn, then physically assaulted the homeowner’s 72-year-old father and his daughter
• The father shot Gonzalez once in the midsection with a legally possessed firearm after fearing for his and his daughter’s safety
• Gonzalez faces charges of battery likely to cause great bodily injury, felony vandalism, and battery
• The father is not being charged; police confirmed he was legally in possession of the firearm
• ICE has begun a personnel investigation in coordination with Fresno police

What This Means for You

This arrest puts a federal immigration enforcement agent under criminal investigation in Fresno for alleged violence against residents. The material does not state whether Gonzalez was in Fresno on official business or for personal reasons, why he was in this neighborhood, or what the personnel investigation will examine beyond the fact that it has begun.

What You Can Do

Anyone with information related to the case can contact the Fresno Police Department at 559-621-7000.

What to Watch

The material offers no explanation for why an off-duty ICE agent from Texas was asleep on a stranger’s lawn in Fresno at 3:20 a.m., and police say they have not determined why he was in the area. The department confirmed he was off duty and alone, but the material provides no context for his presence, no statement from Gonzalez, and no indication of whether he was visiting someone, lost, or in Fresno for work-related reasons despite being off duty.

ICE has begun a personnel investigation, but the material does not state what that investigation will examine, what standards apply, or whether the public will ever see its findings. The father used a legally possessed firearm and is not being charged, but the material does not state what legal standard Fresno police applied to reach that conclusion, whether the shooting will be reviewed by the district attorney, or whether any formal use-of-force review is underway.