The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) established new operational limits for vehicle detentions: only certain trained agents will be able to carry out these procedures, and pursuits of drivers who refuse to stop are prohibited.
The instructions appear in a memorandum dated September 30 that modifies the agency's fugitive operations manual and replaces previous guidelines, according to , which had access to the document.
ICE argues, however, that the instructions do not represent a substantial change in their policy and that vehicle stops will continue.
According to the memorandum, effective immediately, only Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) agents who have completed specific ICE training courses will be allowed to conduct traditional vehicle stops and those deemed high-risk or associated with serious crimes.
Officials who do not have that training will only be able to participate as support and not lead the procedure.
The units used to order a driver to stop must also be equipped with lights and sirens that allow them to be identified as law enforcement vehicles when such devices are activated.
Other versions of the memorandum reviewed by CNN and Associated Press also indicate that the agents present during those operations must have an activated official body camera.
One of the most specific changes affects drivers who do not obey the order to stop. The document states that officers are not authorized, under any circumstances, to initiate vehicle pursuits or PIT maneuvers (Precision Immobilization Technique) against cars that continue to drive.
In those cases, they must collect the vehicle information for further investigations.
The guidance does not completely eliminate other tactics. According to the information published about the memo, certain agents with the appropriate training will be able to use techniques to immobilize vehicles or devices to deflate tires under the conditions outlined by the agency.
ICE downplayed the significance of the instructions. A spokesperson stated that the agency's leadership periodically issues operational reminders and maintained that the memorandum “does not change” the way ICE conducts vehicle stops.
The agency also insisted that these controls and immigration arrests will continue.
The formalization of these rules comes after several incidents in which ICE vehicle detentions ended in shootings.
In July, following two fatal incidents that occurred just days apart in Texas and Maine, the Department of Homeland Security temporarily ordered the suspension of most of these operations while agents received additional training. The pause affected the majority of vehicle detentions related to immigration operations.
The suspension was short-lived. The next day, President Donald Trump lifted the pause and allowed ICE to resume that tactic. Vehicle checkpoints then became part of the immigration operations.
The discussion regained relevance in September after an ICE agent shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a Venezuelan migrant who worked as a delivery driver in Austin, Texas.
Federal authorities alleged that during the operation, the man did not comply with instructions to stop and subsequently attempted to ram an officer with the car. His lawyers have indicated that he still has a bullet lodged in his body.
The arrests related to vehicles have also raised concerns among Cuban immigrants following the case of a Cuban with humanitarian parole who was detained while working as an Uber driver.
According to immigration attorney Wilfredo "Willy" Allen, the man was stopped in his vehicle based on the information from the license plate and was subsequently taken into immigration custody.
The new instructions do not signify a suspension of ICE controls or a general reduction in immigration arrests.
In fact, the agency itself has insisted that operations are ongoing. Days before this memorandum became known, Allen had warned the Cuban community that ICE detentions were still active despite reports that had circulated about an alleged pause for immigrants without criminal records.
Este cambio en los protocolos de ICE forma parte de un panorama migratorio en constante evolución. Sigue todas las novedades sobre operativos, políticas y derechos en nuestra sección de
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