DACA renewal delays leaving LAPD officers to turn in badges and guns
DACA recipient cops facing job loss
Police officers who were previously DACA recipients are facing job losses.
Two Los Angeles Police Department officers who are DACA recipients were forced to turn in their badges and guns this week after federal processing delays caused their work authorization to lapse, leaving them on unpaid leave with no timeline for their return.
Officers Pacheco and Carrillo — who asked FOX 11 not to use their first names — both with the LAPD since 2023, filed their DACA renewal applications months in advance. It wasn't enough. A federal backlog that officials say has grown more than 360 percent in the past year has left their cases in limbo, costing them their paychecks and their ability to serve.
Officer Pacheco says she was ordered to turn in her badge and gun this week and placed on unpaid leave. Pacheco says her captain warned her early that processing times were running longer than usual. She filed three months in advance. Officer Carrillo has now been on unpaid leave for three months, checking the federal website daily for any update.
"Every time I check on the website, it states that it's being processed. There's nothing new. Nothing changes," Carrillo said.
Pacheco says she reached out to the Los Angeles Police Protective League and multiple attorneys and was told by all of them there was nothing they could do.
"It all comes down to the federal government," she said.
This comes as the LAPD faces its worst staffing crisis in roughly 30 years. The department has lost approximately 1,300 officers since 2020 and is projected to have around 8,620 sworn officers by June 30, the lowest deployment level since the mid-1990s.
Congressman Lou Correa (CA-46) wrote directly to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on April 22, urging emergency action for two of his constituents — a Santa Ana police officer and an Irvine crisis intervention specialist, both facing termination due to pending renewals.
"Losing two dedicated law enforcement professionals to a processing delay would be a disservice to the departments they serve and the communities that rely on them," Correa wrote.
Correa sits on the House Committee on Homeland Security. He is among 86 members of Congress who have urged DHS to take action on the growing backlog.
The officers were hired under California's SB 960, which took effect Jan. 1, 2023. The law removed a requirement that peace officers be U.S. citizens, replacing it with a requirement that they be legally authorized to work in the United States. DACA recipients still had to pass the same background checks, psychological evaluations and academy training as any other candidate.
The LAPD was among the first major agencies in California to hire under the new law, recruiting DACA recipients as part of an effort to address its deepening staffing shortage.
Officer Pacheco estimates there are hundreds of DACA officers at the LAPD alone. FOX 11 reached out to the department for an official count. The LAPD has not responded.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, which historically stayed silent on the issue of DACA officer hiring, issued a statement, saying:
"There is a shortage of background-checked, qualified and trained police officers willing to place themselves in harm's way to protect their fellow officers and Los Angeles residents. As long as the laws of our nation are followed, we urge local, state and federal agencies to work expeditiously to overcome any bureaucratic hurdles preventing us from growing our ranks."
When FOX 11 contacted the Department of Homeland Security, officials asked for the officers' names before commenting. The officers, fearing retaliation, declined to provide them.
USCIS spokesman Zach Kahler issued this statement:
"Under the leadership of President Trump, USCIS is safeguarding the American people by more thoroughly screening and vetting all aliens, which can lengthen processing times. DACA does not confer any form of legal status in this country. Illegal aliens claiming to be recipients of DACA are not automatically protected from deportation. Any illegal alien who is a DACA recipient may be subject to arrest and deportation for a number of reasons, including if they committed a crime."
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued the following statement:
"These are people who have lived here since childhood, who chose to wear the LAPD badge and risk their lives for our city. They deserve thanks and solutions from Washington, not cruelty. I will always stand up for our officers and for every Angeleno, no matter what they look like or where they are from."
Officer Pacheco says the affected officers communicate through a Facebook group, sharing updates and supporting each other through the uncertainty. Many, she says, have no other source of income.
"There's really no plan, aside from trying to get traction with a certain politician or certain government entities that can do something before it's too late," Pacheco said. "But other than that, we're kind of at a loss."