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ICE memo lays out limits on vehicle stops
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Key Points:
- ICE has issued new formal guidance restricting vehicle stops to only those Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) officers who have completed specific training courses, prohibiting untrained officers from leading stops.
- Officers without proper training can assist but cannot be the primary officer in vehicle stops, and only vehicles equipped with lights and sirens may be used to initiate stops.
- The memo explicitly forbids vehicle pursuits or PIT maneuvers for vehicles that fail to pull over, instructing officers to collect vehicle information for further investigation instead.
- The guidance follows recent high-profile shootings during ICE vehicle stops, including a fatal incident in Austin involving a Venezuelan migrant, and comes after a temporary pause on traffic stops earlier this year that was later overturned.
- ICE maintains that the new memo does not change existing vehicle stop procedures and that all officers have always received vehicle stop training, with arrests of illegal aliens continuing as usual.
