U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has directed its agents to immediately suspend most vehicle stops during enforcement operations across the country. This policy change, applicable to ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), follows two fatal shootings involving ICE agents in Texas and Maine within the past week. The suspension is temporary and will remain in effect while ERO officers receive additional training on vehicle-stop tactics.
The directive came after Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) urged Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to halt non-urgent vehicle stops. This policy shift could significantly impact ICE operations, as vehicle stops have been a common tactic for identifying and arresting targeted individuals away from their homes or workplaces. However, ERO officers can still participate in operations involving vehicle stops when collaborating with partner law enforcement agencies targeting criminal suspects with judicial warrants.
The two fatal incidents include the shooting of Joan Sebastian Guerrero, 26, a Colombian national, in Biddeford, Maine, on Monday, and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national, in Houston, Texas, just six days prior. In both cases, ICE agents were reportedly looking for other individuals. Guerrero was not the target of the Biddeford operation, and the Maine Attorney General's Office stated he was fatally shot after attempting to flee in the vehicle in the direction of an officer. Salgado Araujo, who had no criminal record, was fatally shot by officers who had pulled over his vehicle while looking for a different person, according to DHS. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) has called for an independent investigation into the Maine shooting, and critics, including independent Maine Senator Angus King, have pointed out that a significant majority of individuals arrested in past ICE operations have had no criminal records.
