ICE capades: the roundup
PWS weekly on the ghoulish acts, dastardly deeds, and unseemly actions of the country's now-biggest LEO
As ICE becomes one of the largest law enforcement organizations on the planet, it couldn’t be more crucial for real-time reporting by journalists with experience on both the migration and authoritarianism beats. As part of efforts to provide that coverage, PWS brings you the weekly “ICE roundup”
Video footage shows DHS lied about ICE shooting in Chicago
The Chicago-Sun Times obtained video surveillance footage of ICE officers shooting and killing Silverio Villegas González, a Mexican migrant, during a traffic stop. The footage contradicts a number of claims by officers who gunned him down.
In public statements, ICE said that the agents were “significantly injured” and “suffered multiple injuries” when González “tried to ram them with his car, dragging the officer.”
In the video, both officers check in over the radio, reporting that their injuries were “nothing major.” In light of the revelation by the Times, city officials have demanded that body camera footage of the incident be released to the public.
Neither DHS nor ICE have responded to the request. ICE will follow up and review “every use of force incident and any discharge of an ICE firearm,” said DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin at a press conference on Monday.
She ignored shouted questions about body cam footage.
The incident brings up serious doubts not just about the statements by ICE following the shooting in Franklin County, Illinois, but also other ICE claims about “assaults” on ICE personnel across the country.
Shooting at an ICE holding center in Dallas
A Dallas shooting at an ICE holding center left one migrant dead and 2 others seriously injured on Wednesday, according to statements from DHS. The migrants’ names had not been made public as of the time of publishing this story, but officials described their status as “critical.”
Latino communities held a candlelight vigil outside the facility on Friday evening, mourning the loss of the victims.
The shooter, Joshua Jahn, whose name the FBI released almost immediately, has been the subject of much speculation throughout the week. Prosecutors claim that Jahn left behind notes detailing his plans, which included motives “to maximize lethality against Ice personnel and to maximize property damage at the facility.”
They claim the migrants were not his targets. PWS will be watching this story closely. The only public information we have on the incident currently comes from the administration and law enforcement officials, and it is wise to take those claims skeptically.
We will be updating in future bulletins as more information becomes available.
California passes a mask ban: a shame it’s theater
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law designed to prevent law enforcement officials from wearing masks during operations in the state.
The measure is useless, however. DHS has already publicly said they will ignore it, and court precedent is on their side. State officials do not have jurisdiction over federal law enforcement.
But, hey, good luck to Newsom on his eternal presidential campaign. I guess.
The Round-up:
ICE raided a children’s birthday party in Austin. They said they were looking for members of Tren de Aragua. In addition to detaining children, they arrested a man who had fled Venezuela after the Tren threatened his life: the Texas Observer
In Naperville, Illinois, ICE agents kicked down ladders during an indiscriminate migration raid targeting roofers. “They had to jump off the roof, because to trap them, the agents knocked down the ladders so they could not leave the roof and basically they said either jump or stay up there,” one homeowner told local media.
One of the men damaged his leg jumping off the roof before being detained by officers: ABC 7 News Chicago.
ICE is arresting more and more US citizens as its tactics grow more aggressive. Andrea Velez says she was wrongfully arrested this past summer in downtown Los Angeles during an ICE raid. She spent two nights in jail and faced a felony charge, which the Justice Department later dropped. She describes the harrowing experience to PBS.
ICE is increasingly using facial data to conduct migration arrests, and state and city police are handing over your data to do it. New Orleans officials are chomping at the bit to hand over as much data as possible: Bolts
An elderly car wash owner filed a civil rights lawsuit seeking $50 million after he was severely injured when federal agents pinned him to the ground during an immigration raid at his business in Los Angeles earlier this month. He claims that, in addition to his injuries, the raid was illegal: LA Daily News
ICE Chilling Photo of the Week:
A masked ICE agent sprays David Black, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, directly in the face during protests outside the ICE processing facility in Broadview, Illinois.
Photo by Ashlee Rezin of the Chicago Sun-Times.
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