George Retes: Army veteran detained in Ventura County immigration raid sues federal government

LOS ANGELES () — A U.S. citizen and Army veteran who was taken into immigration custody during a major raid in Camarillo last summer is challenging the federal government in a lawsuit.

Standing outside the federal courthouse in downtown Los Angeles, George Retes and his attorneys with the Institute for Justice announced they have filed a lawsuit against the federal government over what happened to Retes last July in Ventura County.

“I am pursuing this case not out of anger but out of principle,” Retes told reporters Thursday.

Retes was heading to his security job at a cannabis farm in Camarillo when he was detained by immigration agents during a raid.

“On July 10, 2025, I was wrongfully detained and held incommunicado for three days and three nights,” Retes said.

Retes’ lawyers claim that even though the federal government can assert immunity from any legal action, they filed a lawsuit under what’s called the Federal Tort Claims Act, which permits lawsuits for false arrest.

Retes was one of several U.S. citizens who testified before Congress on what happened when they were detained by immigration agents.

“I identified myself as a U.S. citizen and a veteran, but that didn’t matter,” he told Congress in December. “Agents smashed my window, sprayed tear gas and pepper spray into my car, dragged me out.”

With the federal lawsuit filed, the lawyers say it’ll take years for the suit to eventually reach the U.S. Supreme Court for a ruling.

“We go to the United States Supreme Court and try to get the United States Supreme Court to say that people should be allowed to sue federal officials,” Institute for Justice attorney Anya Bidwell said while standing alongside Retes.

Eyewitness News reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on the lawsuit. The department has not issued a response at the time of publication.

If the case gets to the Supreme Court, Retes’ attorneys’ indicated it’ll be a fight convincing the justices that they should be able to sue the federal government and its employees.