NPAP Calls for Congressional Action and Transparent, Independent Investigations of ICE Killings in Texas and Maine
As more details and bystander videos emerge from the scene of the latest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) killing in Biddeford, ME, NPAP Executive Director Lauren Bonds had this to say:
The bystander videos I watched make it clear that ICE agents carried out another extrajudicial public execution in Maine. After last week’s murder of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, and so many others before him, we were already demanding an end to ICE’s violence. Today, another family is experiencing this same devastation, after another preventable killing by federal agents. It’s clear that the only way to prevent ICE from killing us in the streets is to remove ICE from the streets. Congress can do that, by freezing their funds and limiting their tactics and jurisdiction.
We also demand full transparency and accountability for the agents, agency, and Department of Homeland Security throughout this process, as well as an investigation that is independent from the federal government. The U.S. government cannot be trusted to tell the truth or “police” its own.
No law enforcement officer is justified in shooting into a vehicle, ever. And in this case, the agents were enforcing civil laws. This is at least the third person who has died as a result of ICE agents using this clearly unconstitutional tactic. Enough is enough.
No one deserves to be shot by a federal agent on their way to work, and enforcing a civil law is never more important than a person’s life. The only way to end ICE killings is to take their guns and ban them from enforcing civil laws on our streets. Civil laws should be enforced in courtrooms and office buildings, not on U.S. streets with deadly force.