US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been told to halt most vehicle stops nationwide immediately, following a pair of fatal shootings in Texas and Maine involvi
The report indicates that uS Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been told to halt most vehicle stops nationwide immediately, following a pair of fatal shootings in Texas and Maine involving ICE agents.
It further notes that the suspension will apply to most circumstances except cases involving serious criminal targets, according to US media reports citing unnamed law enforcement sources.
It marks a significant tactical shift for the agency, which has faced criticism in the past year over allegations of excessive use of force and scrutiny over deaths that have occurred during its operations.
White House border tsar Tom Homan says the move is not a policy change, but “a temporary pause” and that deportations will continue.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)declined to comment, telling the BBC: “We are always evaluating our procedures to keep our officers safe and criminals off our streets.”
“We will not disclose or discuss law enforcement tactics.”
Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday, Homan, who is an adviser to Trump, stated that agents already have extensive vehicle-stop training.
He stated officers have only a few moments to react during stops and “every arrest is different”.
The pause, he added, would be brief and would allow leadership to conduct a short-term review.
Democratic Senator Dick Durbin told the BBC News Channel on Tuesday that he is fearful more incidents like this will happen due to what he called “quotas” at ICE for deportations and arrests.
Durbin, a ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee which oversees federal policing as well as immigration and criminal justice reform, stated people at ICE “are not following the basic rules and principles when it comes to good policing”.
“Saying that they’re just going to adjust things is not enough,” the senator insisted. “This is creating a wave of terror and fear in our country. It is interfering with the lives of people who just want to be good citizens and good people.”
In the recent incident, an ICE agent fatally shot a 26-year-old Colombian national during an immigration enforcement operation in Maine.
DHS stated the officer, “fearing for public safety”, opened fire on the man when he attempted to flee the scene of the operation and after agents tried to stop his vehicle.
