Police said the 72-year-old legally possessed the gun and fired after an off-duty federal agent allegedly attacked him and his daughter.
FRESNO, Calif. — A 72-year-old man will not face criminal charges after shooting an off-duty U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who police say attacked him and his adult daughter outside their Fresno home early Friday.
Fresno police said the confrontation began after the daughter arrived home and found 32-year-old David Gonzalez, an ICE agent from Texas, sleeping on the family’s front lawn. Her father went outside to ask Gonzalez to leave, but investigators said Gonzalez appeared intoxicated and agitated when he woke up and allegedly assaulted the older man.
Police said the daughter tried to intervene as her father was being attacked. Gonzalez then allegedly assaulted her and knocked her to the ground. Investigators said the father, fearing for the safety of himself and his daughter, produced a firearm and fired one shot that struck Gonzalez in the midsection.
Police said the father was legally in possession of the firearm. Based on information gathered during the investigation, authorities said he is not facing criminal charges in connection with the shooting. Police have described the father as a victim in the encounter.
The woman’s boyfriend, an off-duty police officer, arrived after the shooting and placed Gonzalez in handcuffs, according to investigators. Fresno officers responding to several 911 calls and a report of gunfire found Gonzalez wounded and restrained when they reached the area near East Dudley Avenue and North Broadway Street shortly after 3 a.m.
Gonzalez was taken by ambulance to a hospital for treatment. Police said he was placed in custody on suspicion of offenses including battery likely to cause great bodily injury, felony vandalism and battery. Authorities said he would be booked into the Fresno County Jail after his release from medical care.
The names of the father and daughter have not been released. Police said both were injured during the confrontation, although authorities have not publicly detailed the full extent of their injuries.
Investigators said Gonzalez was off duty and alone when the confrontation occurred. Police have not determined why the Texas-based federal agent was at the Fresno residence or in that neighborhood before the encounter. Authorities also have not said publicly how long Gonzalez had been working for ICE or what assignment brought him to California.
The shooting occurred as Fresno police were investigating the actions of all people involved, including the circumstances leading up to the gunfire. The decision not to pursue charges against the 72-year-old was based on investigators’ finding that he feared for his and his daughter’s physical safety and legally possessed the gun, police said.
Fresno police said the case remains under investigation and detectives have continued seeking witnesses and video that could provide additional information about the confrontation. ICE has been notified, and police said the federal agency was expected to conduct its own personnel investigation.
Author note: Last updated October 11, 2026.