A 21-year-old university student says he has been left permanently blind in one eye after being struck by a projectile during a confrontation with federal agents at an anti-immigration enforcement protest in Southern California.
Violent Clash at Santa Ana Demonstration
The incident occurred last Friday during a demonstration outside a federal building in Santa Ana, approximately 35 miles south of Los Angeles. Protesters, associated with the group Dare to Struggle, were chanting and, according to video evidence, burned what appeared to be a US flag. The protest was one of several nationwide calling for 'Justice for Renee Good', a woman fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Minneapolis earlier in January.
Kaden Rummler, a student from the Southern California chapter of Dare to Struggle, claims his injury happened when he reacted to a fellow protester being pulled by an agent. Another officer then fired a crowd-control weapon at close range, hitting him in the face. Video footage shows Rummler doubling over in pain before being dragged backwards across the ground by an officer, his face bloodied.
Severe Injuries and Hospitalisation
Pictures from the hospital reveal Rummler's left eye was massively swollen and discoloured. In statements, he described catastrophic damage. "I was told that my tear duct was destroyed," Rummler told KTLA. "My lower eyelid was so messed up that they needed to take skin from my temples to repair it. My eye had sunk in, the globe ruptured and flaps of my eye [were] barely holding on."
His aunt, Jeri Rees, stated he required a six-hour surgery and a two-day hospital stay. She also claimed he suffered skull fractures, though these injuries have not been independently verified. Rummler was released from hospital last Wednesday, but a new photo showed his eye remained severely swollen.
Conflicting Accounts of the Protest
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) presented a starkly different version of events to the Daily Mail. A spokesperson described the protest as "a highly coordinated campaign of violence where rioters wielded shields." They alleged that a mob of around 60 people threw rocks, bottles, and fireworks at law enforcement officers, resulting in two injured officers.
Two demonstrators were arrested and charged with assault on a federal officer and disorderly conduct. The DHS stated that one arrested protester was treated for a cut and released the same night. The department has not disclosed what specific projectiles were fired by its officers. A DHS statement emphasised: "Make no mistake rioting and assaulting law enforcement is not only dangerous but a crime... Any rioter who obstructs or assaults law enforcement will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."
Rummler was issued a citation for disorderly conduct. A GoFundMe page set up on his behalf alleges he was "shot in the eye at point-blank range" and then "denied medical care by the Feds and dragged into the federal building." The incident has sparked further debate about protest tactics and police use of force during increasingly tense demonstrations across the United States.
