Customs and Border Protection officer Nicholas Rice was charged with assault in the third degree and criminal mischief in Colorado state court after he was recorded shoving a woman to the ground at a protest.
The incident happened on Oct. 28, 2025, outside of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Durango.
Demonstrators gathered following the arrest of Fernando Jaramillo-Solano and his two children as he drove them to school. A senior official with ICE’s Denver field office later said the agency misidentified the man.
Video footage of the protest over Jarmillo-Solano’s arrest shows Rice taking a phone from protestor Franci Stagi and throwing it across the street. Per the video, he then grabbed Stagi by the hair and pushed her to the ground.
“I’m glad something is being done finally, for not just me, but for all the people,” Stagi told CBS Colorado.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in a statement that the charges against Rice are “unlawful’ and a “publicity stunt.”
