The Brief

Just about every Saturday, Ulises Parias drives two hours to visit his father, Carlitos Ricardo "Richard" Parias, at the Adelanto Detention Center in San Bernardino County.

They talk on the phone regularly. Parias tells his father about his 16-year-old sister and about his college classes.

Occasionally, his dad's health comes up: His left arm hurts and he gets headaches, fevers and blurry vision. It has been over eight months since Parias' father was shot by federal agents during an immigration enforcement arrest in Los Angeles. Immigration attorneys representing Parias allege he is not receiving adequate medical care, including pain medication and physical therapy, following an encounter with federal agents that resulted in Parias being shot near his left elbow.

"The last thing he told me was, have a good day at school. Then, like five minutes later, I heard some commotion outside," Parias, 20, said in an interview with NPR. "My heart stopped for a minute, and then I quickly went outside [to] the streets. And that's when I found my dad's car. The window was shattered."

Attorneys for Parias have tried to secure his release from detention while his immigration case plays out.

So far, that request has been denied. Parias' case, his attorneys say, is one that exemplifies the challenges facing many detainees in a judicial and detention system with limited resources and dwindling avenues for any recourse, including for people with no criminal record.

This year brought increased scrutiny on federal law enforcement's use of force after two federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis and on the conditions within immigration detention centers, including medical care, amid some of the highest numbers of people in detention and of deaths of those in custody. Parias' case showcases the nexus of the issues — and the narrow scope of oversight and resources within the judicial and agency level for someone injured by the federal agency that is also detaining them.

"There are not enough people, and there's not enough concern. And that's leading to permanent disability and death," said Margaret Hellerstein, an immigration attorney representing Parias. "The legal avenues have been exhausted at this point."

Parias entered the country illegally in 2002 from Mexico and spent the past two decades living in the Los Angeles area, including with his two U.S. citizen children.

He gained a large social media following, monetizing his TikTok account as a primary source of income as he shared community events. When the Trump administration increased enforcement in Los Angeles last year, Parias began documenting immigration arrests and federal officer presence for his more than 250,000 followers. After more than two decades of living and working in the U.S. unnoticed, his activism put him on ICE's radar.

"I was worried. I was scared. I would keep telling him, 'Please be careful,'" Ulises Parias recounted. "'The only thing they care about is that you're not a citizen. That's all.'"

Encounter with ICE leads to shooting

In October, Parias was leaving his house when vehicles driven by federal officers blocked his path. Body camera footage obtained by the LA Times shows several federal agents surrounding the vehicle.

"I'm going to break the window," one yelled shortly after Parias came to a stop and began to smash the passenger-side window of the car Parias was driving, while holding a gun in the other hand. Yelling in Spanish can be heard from officers saying, "I am going to shoot you," and, "Turn off the car." Others yell, "Police, get out!"

Several officers drew their firearms as Parias appeared to try to move his car, which was blocked by a larger police vehicle.

Parias can be heard yelling in Spanish, "I don't have anything," and, "Kill me."

Officers yelled various instructions, including, "If you move, we will shoot," and, "Turn off the car," and seconds later, an officer opened fire.

"All use-of-force incidents involving individuals in ICE custody are documented and subject to internal review, consistent with ICE detention standards and DHS oversight requirements," an unnamed DHS spokesperson told NPR in a statement. The agency did not respond to questions about the outcome of any investigation into this use of force.

Following the shooting, Parias was taken to a hospital to be treated for a gunshot wound near his left elbow. The bullet also hit a U.S. marshal who was a part of the operation. The federal government brought criminal charges against Parias: assault on a federal officer.

Parias did not have any criminal history or infraction before the incident when he was shot, Hellerstein said.

NPR reviewed medical records from November to May that show Parias reported consistent pain and decreased mobility. A report from May includes details of pain radiating from his neck, down his arm, to his hand on his left side. The report also says no therapy was completed and Parias had been in a sling for six months. The records detail that there is decreased mobility in the left shoulder, and when "palpating his left forearm … presents tears in his eyes due to pain."

For months following the shooting, he was primarily prescribed Motrin, seizure and nerve pain medication gabapentin and muscle rub cream for the pain, as well as other medications.

DHS told NPR that from November to June, Parias has been seen by a nurse who, among other things, provided him a brace and sling, educated him on exercises to improve his range of motion and prescribed various pain and anti-inflammatory medications.

In March, a nurse assessed Parias for complaints of increasing pain, and the nurse noted decreased mobility, prompting the nurse to submit a referral for an orthopedic evaluation, as well as additional medications. An orthopedic surgeon evaluated Parias and also provided a physical therapy referral, according to DHS, though by May his pain still was not relieving. He has seen a doctor as recently as this week.

Immigration detention hinges on a bill that passed with bipartisan support

After spending nearly a week in the hospital in October immediately after the shooting, Parias was placed in federal criminal custody while the charges against him played out in federal court. In November, he was released and transferred to ICE custody, which according to court records, was done pursuant to the Laken Riley Act.

That legislation was the first bill President Donald Trump signed into law in his second term.

The measure, passed with the help of Democrats, directs federal immigration enforcement to detain and deport those without legal status charged with minor theft or shoplifting, assault of a law enforcement officer, or crimes resulting in death or serious bodily injury of another person.

It broadly expanded the scope of who ICE would prioritize for detention.

In December, U.S. District Judge Fernando Olgin dismissed the charges against Parias, citing, among other reasons, that he had not received constitutionally adequate access to legal representation. The government is appealing that decision, disputing that Parias was deprived of access to counsel.

While Parias remained in ICE custody, immigration attorneys submitted a habeas petition in District Court also to Judge Olgin. That is a legal avenue to argue that a person should not be detained.

"No one is eligible for bond. No one is eligible for a [bond] hearing … You have to file a habeas," Hellerstein said. "Which means, unfortunately, that for people like Richard who are languishing in detention and have serious medical concerns, you could be waiting for your decision for months and months and months."

A federal judge then ordered an immigration judge to hold a bond hearing. In court filings to immigration court, ICE argued that the immigration judge didn't have jurisdiction over the case because of the Laken Riley Act. The judge, according to filings reviewed by NPR, agreed and ultimately denied bond, adding that she would have done so even if the act was not in effect because Parias could be considered a flight risk due to his lack of legal status.

"I don't think that he was given a constitutionally adequate bond hearing. And to be clear, this is not unique to him. It's the way the law is at the moment," Hellerstein said, adding that the Trump administration also created a mandatory detention policy in addition to the Laken Riley Act, which mandates that anyone who entered the country illegally be held in detention while they fight their case. That has resulted in high numbers of habeas petitions in federal courts.

Hellerstein is going back to Judge Olgin, who ordered the bond hearing, asking for him to let Parias out of detention. That request has been pending since February.

Limited options for recourse 

Seeking additional help, the family and lawyers reached out to the office of Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Calif., who later visited Parias at the Adelanto Detention Center.

"I have a constituent who is being detained in a facility hours from where his family lives. Who is in pain," Kamlager-Dove said in an interview with NPR. "What I am seeking is for him to get the treatment that he needs so that he can heal and so he can also want to live."

Caseworkers in the congresswoman's office have been in touch with DHS about Parias, including with the ICE officer assigned to the case. But she said that although the agency has been responsive, including in facilitating her visits, it is not providing what she is asking for.

"What I need to hear is that he is going to physical therapy, he is getting the kind of antibiotics and medical and prescription medication that he needs to help him with his vision, to help him with his headaches, to help him with his pain," Kamlager-Dove said.

Recently, congressional Republicans approved $70 billion for immigration enforcement, including detention capacity. But internal oversight offices at the agency are unfunded, including those that specifically investigated complaints about immigration detention conditions such as allegations about insufficient access to medical care.

Without control of either chamber of Congress, Democratic lawmakers and immigration advocates have limited options to ask for help.

"We don't have that many oversight tools. We have stretched ourselves to the limit in the hearings as a party in the minority," Kamlager-Dove said.

In recent weeks, other Democrats have continued to go to detention centers, including in New Jersey and Texas, seeking to review detainees' access to food and medical care, and information about detention capacity. But without legislative might, the lawmakers' options to go further are dwindling. Like others in her party, Kamlager-Dove is eyeing the upcoming midterms as a moment for potential change.

"If we are victorious in November, then we will have a lot more tools at our disposal," she said.

Detention policy adds pressure to families to leave

In the meantime, Ulises, Parias' son, has been working to fix the car in which his father was shot. He has cleaned up the blood and the broken glass.

He picks his sister up from school, talks to his father nearly every day on the phone and has helped his family navigate the complicated legal landscape.

"Every time a lawyer came to the house to speak with us, I had to translate everything," he said. "So basically I was the only person basically helping out the family just because I was the oldest."

Hellerstein sees Parias' detention as another example of the administration using detention as a tool to encourage detained and other undocumented immigrants to opt to leave the country.

"For most people, ICE detention is not punitive. Detention is civil detention," Hellerstein said. "You are not in ICE detention because you're being punished. You're in ICE detention because they think you're a danger or a flight risk."

A DHS spokesperson, in the statement to NPR, also said, "ICE detention is still not punitive."

For someone like Parias, who does not have a criminal record, the allegation of him being a danger to a community is easy to refute, she said. But a flight risk could be anyone without a clear path to legal status.

For now, Parias' son is trying to focus on his grades as he works on earning a mechanical engineering degree and find moments of joy like watching the World Cup games. But even that is bittersweet.

"This is the first World Cup where I'm experiencing it alone. And it feels wrong. Honestly, it feels wrong knowing that I don't have my dad to watch it with me," Parias said. "So I'm hoping the next step is to get a call from the lawyer saying soon he will be with us again."
Copyright 2026 NPR

The Los Angeles Police Department wants 300 new vehicles for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and it's asking the city to pay for them.

LAPD officials say the request for around $30 million to procure the vehicles would help temporarily expand the Police Department's fleet during the summer of 2028, so the police force could patrol Olympic venues while maintaining its presence around the city.

City officials are skeptical. The L.A. City Council discussed the request at a Budget and Finance Committee meeting earlier this month, where councilmembers questioned why the city should cover the cost.

"I'm incredibly uncomfortable with spending $30 million on cars, and the excuse being used that we need them for the Games, when the Games are going to be a month long," Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, the chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, told LAPD officials.

The committee kicked the decision down the road, asking the city administrative ffficer for more information on the financial impact of procuring the vehicles, the different options to pay for them and where else LAPD might find the resources, including from other law enforcement agencies in the state.

But the request highlights an increasingly thorny question around the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games: Who will pay for astronomical security costs?

The price tag for LAPD activity during the Olympics is of huge importance to the city of L.A., which is the financial backstop for the Games. The Olympics are intended to be privately funded and cost-free for the taxpayer.

Private Olympics organizing committee LA28 has not included expenses for police in its more than $7 billion budget, and is banking on the federal government covering security costs.

The Trump administration has allocated $1 billion for security at the Games, but those costs will be distributed among the many cities with Olympic and Paralympic venues, and it's not clear how much Los Angeles will get.

LAPD's vehicle request is one example of the limits of that support, according to Police Chief Jim McDonnell, who wrote in a July letter to the Budget and Finance Committee that he does not expect federal funds to cover the 300 additional vehicles he's requesting.

That's because LAPD is anticipating federal dollars to go toward paying to deploy thousands of officers across the city during the Games.

According to one estimate sent to the City Council by LAPD in May, the department's personnel costs for the Olympics and Paralympics could be more than $730 million, with close to half of that money going to outside law enforcement brought in to fill staffing holes.

As the council delays a decision on new patrol vehicles, the city is moving ahead with a separate request. It already approved $13 million to procure 107 non-patrol vehicles for the Games in its 2026-2027 budget. Those include trucks, prisoner transport vans and unmarked investigative vehicles.

According to the department, vehicles acquired for the Olympics won't permanently expand the LAPD fleet. Instead, new vehicles will replace old ones once the Games are over.

A new NASA space telescope launched Sunday from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida that will help scientists probe the nature of dark matter, dark energy and other mysteries of the universe.

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which is about the size of a tour bus, lifted off at 4:26 a.m. PT on SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket. The 18,000-pound spacecraft is now on a million-mile journey that will take it to its new home in space.

"What a glorious dawn launch," NASA's Jackie Townsend, Roman telescope project manager, said at a press briefing soon after liftoff. "The ride was magnificent. It put us right where we wanted to be."

More good news came shortly after launch as the telescope began deploying its solar panels and other instruments. "Ground controllers at NASA Goddard have been receiving telemetry data from Roman, and apparently all systems are nominal," said NASA administrator Jared Isaacman.

The journey to Roman's new home

Roman has an unusual origin story: Initially designed as a spy telescope for the National Reconnaissance Office, the spacecraft was donated to NASA instead. The new telescope is named for Nancy Grace Roman, NASA's first chief astronomer who was known as the 'Mother of Hubble' for her championing of the iconic Hubble Space Telescope. Her namesake telescope will have the sharpness of Hubble but a field of view that is at least 100 times larger, allowing it to image huge swaths of the sky at once.

Before it can do that, the Roman Space Telescope will have to get to its new home in the sky about a million miles away. Roman will live at the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point known as L2. There, the competing gravitational pulls of the Earth and the Sun help the telescope keep a steady orbit while using minimal fuel. The James Webb Space Telescope orbits at this point, which gives the spacecraft an unobstructed view of the sky.

"It takes us a good three-plus months to get out there, and we're spending that time checking everything out and doing a whole bunch of calibrations and making sure everything is working the way we know it can," said NASA's Jeremy Perkins, an integration and test scientist on the mission. "It's basically like our time to kick the tires and just make sure that the focus is right, the pointing is right."

Uncovering cosmic mysteries

Roman is on a kind of ghost hunt, searching for more evidence of dark matter — mysterious, invisible stuff whose gravitational influence appears to hold galaxies together and define the overarching structure of the cosmos. Roman will study how gravity subtly affects the path of light along great distances throughout a massive survey of the sky. By doing this, the telescope will help map both normal and dark matter, giving scientists a better understanding of just what this elusive substance might be.

Astronomers will also use Roman's observations to uncover dark energy, the strange force that is believed to drive the expansion of the universe. Scientists' understanding of dark energy comes from observations of a kind of exploding star known as a Type Ia supernova. These supernovas appear to shine at known and predictable brightness throughout the cosmos, giving them the nickname "standard candles." By cataloguing even more of these supernovas, scientists hope to develop a better understanding of how dark energy works, which could fundamentally change the way astronomers view the universe.

Roman will also search for planets outside our solar system. Since astronomers confirmed their existence in the 1990s, more than 6,000 exoplanets have been identified. With Roman, NASA expects to identify more than 100,000 of them by identifying dips in starlight caused by a planet passing in front of its own star. The telescope also hopes to find some 1,000 through microlensing — a technique that searches for tiny changes in background starlight caused by the gravity of a far-off planet.

"Why do we care so much about exoplanets? Because one of our main goals at NASA is answering the question: Are we alone in the universe?" Nicky Fox, NASA's associate administrator of the science mission directive, said at the Sunday morning briefing.

The spacecraft is poised to bring scientists a step closer to answering that question: It will demonstrate technology that can take a picture of a planet by selectively blocking out the light from its home star.

"We are going to make this giant leap forward with the coronagraph technology that is going to allow us to look at these distant worlds and start to really resolve the atmosphere around them to let us know if they could be habitable," she said.

A deluge of data

The telescope will beam back 1.4 terabytes of raw science data each day, using a refrigerator-sized high-gain antenna. The data will be available immediately to scientists and the public.

"Roman's database at the end of its prime mission after five years is going to be bigger than your standard music streaming platform," Perkins said.

Because of the massive amounts of data, NASA is making it available to anyone through a cloud-based system called Roman Nexus. For Perkins, that's what makes this mission unique — anyone can look at the raw data and find new discoveries.

"It's all the things that we are not expecting to see," he said. "It's all these one-in-a-million things that we're going to be able to see with Roman that really excites me."
Copyright 2026 NPR

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday backed off his proposal to reduce costs for electrical utilities after their equipment sparks wildfires, agreeing instead to a narrower deal after homeowners, insurers and fire survivors argued his original plan would have shifted those costs onto them.

Instead, Newsom and Senate and Assembly leaders agreed on a narrower package of wildfire policies, including prohibiting private equity groups from investing in wildfire claims and denying utility CEO bonuses in the years their companies cause fatal fires.

The deal is a victory for lawmakers who refused to reduce damages to victims and shift costs away from utilities. Opponents included insurance companies, consumer advocates and survivors of the January 2025 Eaton Fire caused by Southern California Edison equipment that killed 19 people in Altadena.

Under the agreement announced Saturday, the state would create a “fast-pay” program for survivors’ property loss, pain and suffering in the wake of a utility-caused fire. It would include deadlines for determining which claims are valid within 60 days of receipt, and settlement offers within 30 days after that, but survivors could still pursue the long process of suing utilities if they choose.

The state also commits to improving its local wildfire mitigation efforts and sharing more data on insurance coverage in areas with fire risk.

The final agreement, which lawmakers will vote on in Senate Bill 492, caps a contentious series of closed-door negotiations between Newsom’s office and legislative leaders on how much utility companies should pay after fires.

Newsom wanted utilities to have to pay less to insurance companies, some wildfire survivors, local governments and corporations claiming damages after a fire. His administration is concerned the mounting costs threaten investor confidence in the state’s three major for-profit utilities: Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric. He said that could lead to higher borrowing costs for the companies and higher electricity bills for Californians.

Newsom also argued his plan would prioritize paying survivors who lose their homes. In past fires, investors have funded lawsuits or claims have been sold to hedge funds, increasing the number of third parties seeking to profit from wildfire payouts, Newsom’s office has said.

SB 492 does not include most of the proposals Newsom wanted and does not substantially change how much utilities must pay after fires they cause. California’s $18 billion wildfire fund that utilities draw from to pay fire damages — and which would fund claims in the fast-pay program — is funded 50-50 by utility customers and shareholders. Proponents of Newsom’s proposals remain concerned that another catastrophic fire could drain that money, leaving utilities facing a mountain of costs and another round of potential bankruptcies.

Nine of the state’s 20 most destructive wildfires were caused by electrical equipment or power lines.

“This system needs full structural reform — not a partial one,” Newsom said in a statement Saturday morning. “I urge the Legislature to build on this progress next year and finish the work we started to secure the Wildfire Fund’s long-term durability, stabilize electricity rates, and ensure fire victims are never again turned into unsecured creditors in a bankruptcy proceeding.”

Negotiations may resume next year

Sen. Josh Becker, a Menlo Park Democrat who was closely involved in the negotiations, acknowledged that lawmakers would likely have to return to the issue of utility liabilities under a future governor.

“What I heard very clearly, certainly from senators, from the Assembly and even from all the stakeholders was that they’re willing to do that,” he said. “They’re willing to start getting around the table and looking at some of those structural issues. But that takes time. We ran out of time in this session.”

“We certainly stood with fire survivors,” said Sen. Ben Allen, a Democrat who represents Palisades Fire survivors. “Challenges with affordability of electricity (remain). That’s not going away.”

The utilities agreed and said there needs to be a long-term solution.

“While we appreciate the efforts made, we are disappointed that the state couldn’t develop comprehensive wildfire reform,” said Southern California Edison spokesperson David Eisenhauer.

San Diego Gas & Electric would not comment and referred questions to Wildfire Victims First, the utility-backed campaign whose priorities aligned with the governor’s wish list.

Campaign spokesperson Nathan Click said the state still needs to make urgent structural reforms “to ensure a fair recovery system.”

PG&E spokesperson Lynsey Paulo said the company is reviewing the bill and is “focused on helping wildfire survivors recover faster, making communities safer, and protecting customer utility bills.” Company stocks tumbled Friday after reports of a potential agreement that did not include any utility cost-shifts.

Senate President Pro Tem Monique Limón, the Santa Barbara Democrat whose caucus opposed Newsom’s cost-shifting proposals, said in a statement the agreement “supports survivors in their recovery, curbs Wall Street practices that increase costs on consumers, and mitigates the destruction of these wildfires in the first place.”

Assemblymember Cottie Petrie-Norris, an Irvine Democrat who led negotiations for the Assembly, in a statement called the deal “an important step forward.”

“We held the line to protect the people who needed it most,” she said.

The biggest sticking point was the governor’s insistence on eliminating subrogation, which allows insurance companies to sue utilities to recoup their costs for wildfire claims. Lawmakers were staunchly opposed to eliminating that avenue out of concern that it would disrupt the state’s fragile insurance market, raise premiums and cause insurers to flee the state, and they rejected it.

“This outcome keeps costs with the parties responsible for wildfires and helps protect the progress California is making in stabilizing its insurance market,” said Denni Ritter, a vice president at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

While the deal is a win for the insurance industry, a senator who represents Eaton Fire survivors said it’s important to also hold insurers accountable.

“We know that in many cases, insurance companies delayed and denied fire survivors’ claims and payments, delaying recovery,” said Democratic Sen. Sasha Renée Pérez. “We need all industries to come to the table in a real way.”

State lawmakers also resisted the governor’s effort to limit survivors’ non-economic damages, an important victory for the Eaton Fire survivors who relentlessly campaigned against the proposal.

Fire survivors and consumer advocates credited the Senate, especially Limón, for pushing back on Newsom.

“In the face of extraordinary pressure from some of the most powerful interests in our state, they centered survivors and California families,” said Joy Chen, executive director of Every Fire Survivor’s Network.

Advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, which worked in concert with fire survivors, called the negotiations “an exercise in the democratic process.”

“(The Legislature) told (Newsom) they wouldn’t bend in closed-door negotiations,” said Jamie Court, president of the group.

Pérez commended survivors for pressuring lawmakers over the past couple of weeks.

“The fire survivors have shaped this entire conversation,” Pérez said. “They made a tremendous impact.”

For many millennials, '90s Nickelodeon shows such as Hey Arnold!, Doug, and Rocko’s Modern Life represent a golden age of animation, with theme songs and music scores often just as weird and offbeat as the characters and storylines.

Take the theme song of Hey Arnold! — an earworm that introduced a generation of young TV viewers to acid jazz, funk, hip-hop and more, even if they didn’t realize it at the time.

Hey Arnold! composer Jim Lang is taking the show's music on tour, with a few stops in SoCal.

LAist’s Robert Garrova caught up with Lang to talk about the show’s endearing music legacy.

On whether he and the other musicians on the show set out to introduce young people to new musical genres

Lang:  I wish I could take credit for being that intentional about it. But we weren't really hoping to introduce anybody to jazz. That was just a wonderful kinda side benefit of the way the show played out.

Was the music too good for a kids' show? Take for instance the theme music for the fan-favorite Pigeon Man episode

Lang:  I don't think there's any such thing as music that's too good for a kids' show. I think children have the hugest imagination for absorbing things that they've never seen before, for being delighted by the unusual.

Those things [music scores] all work because the writers and the animators and the background artists and everybody did such an incredible job before it ever showed up at my studio. That's it. You just kind of shut up and get out of the way and let the image kind of play through you in a way.

On what it felt like being at Nickelodeon in the '90s when the bosses were saying, 'Hey, yeah, let's do some acid jazz on a kids show'

Lang: Well, the women that started Nickelodeon and that ran that company in that era were a really unusual breed, and they were super adventurous. They didn't discourage, you know, people doing crazy stuff.

On what fans' reactions are at the live shows

Lang: Oh, it's just such a love fest. It is nostalgic. The music is meaningful to them because the show, after five seasons, there was a sound to it, and people found it relatable. So getting to hear a band actually play that stuff live, it sounds familiar to the audience in a way that I think people were just thrilled by.