The Department of Homeland Security has said many of the individuals shot at are weaponizing their vehicles, a claim that in many cases is disputed by witnesses or the accused. On Oct. 2, the department issued new guidance to officers for vehicle stops, including prohibiting chases and requiring specific training.
In some cases, officers have charged the individuals who were shot with endangering a federal officer. In some instances — most notably one in which an officer was later charged with lying about being attacked in Minneapolis — those charges were later dropped.
When asked about the number of shootings so far during President Trump’s deportation crackdown, border czar Tom Homan conceded that “mistakes have been made,” but that “the vast majority of ICE officers are doing a professional job.”
“They’re trained to de-escalate. They’re trained to use less lethal force,” he said.
Homan argued that fewer shootings would occur if officers were allowed to make arrests in local jails and prisons, but sanctuary policies in some cities and states force them to make arrests in communities. Shootings have occurred in both sanctuary and non-sanctuary jurisdictions, and arrests increased across the country this summer.
On Thursday, an ICE agent shot seven rounds into the car of Oscar Bergal in New York City’s Marble Hill neighborhood, hitting him in the neck and sending him to the hospital. Bergal’s attorney appeared in court Friday and says a bullet is still in his body. A 5-year-old child was in the back seat of the car at the time of the shooting and was not struck, authorities said.
DHS said it was conducting a targeted operation to arrest a citizen of the Dominican Republic living in the U.S. illegally with alleged ties to the Trinitarios gang. Bergal had a prior criminal conviction for grand larceny and multiple prior arrests for assault, robbery and weapons possession, DHS said. DHS claimed Bergal refused orders to exit his vehicle and “then weaponized his vehicle and proceeded to accelerate going toward other officers,” though one witness told CBS News New York she saw the car driving away from the ICE agents.
