Protester blinded, skull fractured by DHS agent during Santa Ana demonstration, family says

"A young protester narrowly avoided being killed but was left permanently blind after a Department of Homeland Security agent fired a nonlethal round at close range during a Santa Ana protest last week, according to family of the victim. Jeri Rees said her 21-year-old nephew underwent six hours of surgery and that doctors found shards of plastic, glass and metal embedded in his eyes and around his face, including a metal piece lodged 7 mm from a carotid artery."

"Several videos of Friday's incident were shared on social media. One video shows demonstrators, who were protesting the fatal shooting in Minnesota of Renee Good, throwing orange safety cones at the agents, who were standing guard outside of the Santa Ana federal building. The video cuts to three agents approaching the group before one agent tries to take a young person into custody, prompting at least three demonstrators to try to intervene. The person taken into custody was identified by friends as Skye Jones."

"In the video, at least one agent appears to fire nonlethal rounds at the crowd, hitting one woman in the leg before aiming and striking the victim in the face. The video shows the victim dropping to the ground after being shot, holding their face as the crowd retreats. The same agent then drags the victim by the hood of their jacket; they appear to be choking, grasping at the jacket binding their neck as"

A 21-year-old protester was permanently blinded after a Department of Homeland Security agent fired a nonlethal round at close range during a Santa Ana protest. The victim underwent six hours of surgery; doctors found shards of plastic, glass and metal in his eyes and face, including a metal piece lodged 7 mm from a carotid artery that surgeons chose not to remove for safety. The victim suffered a fractured skull around the eyes and nose and permanently lost vision in the left eye. Video shows agents confronting demonstrators, nonlethal rounds fired, and the victim dragged by an agent.

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