Carlitos Ricardo Parias, the TikTok streamer and immigration journalist who was shot and killed by ICE officers in South Los Angeles in October of this year, has had his conviction thrown out by a federal judge.
U.S. District Judge Fernando M. Holguin on Saturday fired The charges stem from Parias not being given access to a lawyer while he was in ICE custody and that the government failed to meet a court-ordered deadline to release body camera footage of the shooting.
ICE initially claimed that Parias, known online as Richard L.A., was stopped using standard operating procedures. According to the affidavit, Parias ignored commands to exit the vehicle, crashing into two law enforcement vehicles and then “aggressively accelerated” in his vehicle. But U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli directly rejected the government's argument, saying agents had “backed him into a corner,” which is not considered standard procedure for stopping traffic.
CNN reported that an ICE officer confronted Parias and used his weapon to break Parias' window, according to a law enforcement source who spoke to the publication. Authorities believe the agent's weapon went off as he tried to grab Parias, struck Parias and ricocheted to hit the deputy marshal. Parias was then charged with assault.
