Homan blames Democrats after fatal ICE shootings spark backlash

Two fatal shootings in Houston and Maine left a Mexican national and a Colombian man dead within a week. In both cases, the agents involved were not wearing body cameras.

In Houston’s East End and Magnolia Park area, ICE shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo around 6:50 a.m. on July 7 during a “targeted enforcement operation.” DHS said he ignored commands and tried to ram an ICE vehicle. His family and local officials disputed that version, and his son said Salgado Araujo may have panicked after unmarked cars followed him. Democratic Reps. Sylvia Garcia, Lizzie Fletcher, Al Green and Christian Menefee demanded an independent investigation and the release of complete, unedited body-camera footage.

Four days later in Biddeford, Maine, ICE agents fatally shot a 26-year-old man from Colombia while pursuing him for deportation. ICE said the driver used his vehicle as a weapon. Sen. Angus King said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told him the driver had “weaponized” his vehicle, and King said the agents were not wearing body cameras. Protests and vigils followed in Houston and Maine.

Congress had already given DHS $20 million in April for body-worn cameras for immigration-enforcement officers. Senate appropriations language reserved the money for the “procurement, deployment, and operations” of cameras for ICE and CBP officers interacting with the public. Every ICE arrest team will have at least one body-camera-equipped officer.

Tom Homan, President Donald Trump’s border czar, blamed Democrats on the camera issue. He also described the suspension of vehicle stops as a “temporary pause,” not a policy change. ICE arrests topped 10,000 in a five-day span at the end of June, and earlier January killings in Minneapolis involved Renee Good and Alex Pretti.