NEWS: Sen. Schiff Joins Warren, Lawmakers in Push for Expedited Probe of ICE’s Violence After Watchdog Confirms Investigation

Lawmakers urge independent Inspector General to fast-track investigation following horrific videos, witness statements, reports of masked immigration agents using aggressive force in communities across America

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) joined Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), along with Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Lou Correa (D-Calif.), and Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.), in pressing the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) to expedite its investigation into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents' use of force. The Congressional push follows violent ICE and CBP operations in Minneapolis that resulted in the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti last month, in addition to reports of ICE agents using increasingly aggressive tactics and entering homes without a warrant.

"Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have gotten out of control, using needlessly violent force against community members who are exercising their First Amendment rights and pose no threat," wrote the lawmakers.

The DHS OIG is responsible for conducting independent oversight of the agency to identify instances of misconduct and reporting findings directly to the Secretary of Homeland Security and Congress. Since the start of the Trump administration, immigration enforcement tactics have become increasingly aggressive, with reports and bystander videos showing immigration agents placing people in chokeholds during arrests, tackling people to the ground, releasing tear gas and flashbang grenades at close range, smashing windows and breaking doors, and brandishing guns.

Just last month, these aggressive tactics led to the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens: a mother named Renée Good and ICU nurse Alex Pretti.

"These events underscore the urgent need for the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Inspector General to conduct an expeditious review of ICE's and Customs and Border Protection's brutal tactics and share its findings with Congress and the public as soon as possible," wrote the lawmakers.

On January 8, 2026, OIG announced a new audit "to determine whether ICE investigates allegations of excessive use of force and holds personnel accountable" consistent with federal law and DHS and ICE policies. The OIG has also initiated five other audits into DHS's practices, including DHS processes for determining U.S. citizenship during enforcement operations and CBP interior enforcement.

But OIG audits typically take over a year to complete, even as ICE continues to cause severe harm on the ground. Given the urgency - and the growing risk to public safety and civil rights - the lawmakers urged OIG to expedite its audit, provide interim briefings and preliminary findings to Congress, and use escalation tools - including Management Alerts and 7-day letters - if ICE refuses to comply with OIG's data access requests.

"Given the urgency of this situation - with communities facing severe, and sometimes fatal, harm from ICE's tactics on American streets every day - we request that your office conduct this review expeditiously and share any preliminary findings with Congress and the public on an expedited basis," wrote the lawmakers.

The lawmakers also requested that, as part of this review, the OIG provide answers to a series of questions on ICE's and CBP's practices, including use-of-force claims, use of warrants in arrests, detentions and arrests of American citizens, recruitment, vetting, and training, and their process for handling professional misconduct.

Other signers include Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), along with Representatives Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.), Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.), Greg Casar (D-Texas), Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Madeline Dean (D-Pa.), Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), Al Green (D-Texas), Val Hoyle (D-Ore.), Glenn Ivey (D-Md.), Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Bill Keating (D-Mass.), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), Seth Magaziner (D-R.I.), Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Lateefah Simon (D-Calif.), Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.), Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.), Lori Trahan (D-Mass.), and James Walkinshaw (D-Va.).

The full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Dear Inspector General Cuffari:

We write following horrific videos, witness statements, and other reports of masked immigration agents using aggressive force in communities across America. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have gotten out of control, using needlessly violent force against community members who are exercising their First Amendment rights and pose no threat. Reporting and bystander videos indicate that immigration agents have placed people in chokeholds during arrests, tackled people to the ground, released tear gas and flash-bang grenades at close range, smashed windows and broken doors, drawn guns, and most alarmingly, shot and killed two U.S. citizens, a mother named Renée Good and ICU nurse Alex Pretti this month alone.6 These events underscore the urgent need for the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) to conduct an expeditious review of ICE's and Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) brutal tactics and share its findings with Congress and the public as soon as possible.

On June 11, 2025, members of Congress requested that you conduct an investigation into ICE's aggressive use of force. The OIG initially responded that DHS was "in a better position" to answer our questions. Seven months later, after a slew of reports of brutal ICE raids throughout the country, on January 8, 2026, the OIG announced a new audit to "determine whether ICE investigates allegations of excessive use of force and holds personnel accountable in accordance with applicable Federal laws, DHS policies, and ICE directives." The OIG also announced audits into DHS's processes for determining U.S. citizenship during enforcement operations and into CBP's interior enforcement.

While we are pleased that the OIG is investigating these matters, we are concerned about the OIG's timeline for completing this audit. DHS OIG's standard benchmark is to complete audits within 397 days, and the Government Accountability Office recently found that the OIG is not even meeting that goal on a consistent basis. Given the urgency of this situation - with communities facing severe, and sometimes fatal, harm from ICE's tactics on American streets every day - we request that your office conduct this review expeditiously and share any preliminary findings with Congress and the public on an expedited basis.

Furthermore, we request that you use all proactive tools available to immediately put Congress, the American public, and DHS itself on notice about any urgent issues you uncover. Such tools could include issuing a Management Alert "to inform senior DHS managers of significant matters that may pose a serious, imminent threat" to the safety and health of communities and sending a 7-day letter to Congress if ICE or CBP refuses to comply with the OIG's data access requests.

Since our June 11 letter, ICE's enforcement actions have escalated sharply, sparking public outcry and underscoring the need for rapid and rigorous oversight by the OIG. For instance, reports describe an incident in St. Paul, Minnesota in which federal immigration agents allegedly forced entry into the home of a longtime U.S. citizen without a warrant, detained him at gunpoint, and led him outside in sub-freezing weather wearing only underwear and a blanket, before later confirming his citizenship and releasing him "an hour or two later." In addition, immigration agents have allegedly used dangerous neck restraints and chokehold-like techniques during arrests, including in encounters involving U.S. citizens and minors. Immigration agents are using chemical sprays on peaceful protestors, breaking car windows, and dragging citizens out of their cars. Most tragically, federal immigration agents fatally shot Renée Nicole Good during a large-scale enforcement operation in Minneapolis and, just days later, shot and killed Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, in another Minneapolis encounter - appalling and preventable incidents that underscore the urgent need for rapid, independent oversight.

Yet, the Trump Administration has done nothing to rein ICE in. Instead, President Trump has shrugged these atrocities off, saying immigration agents are inevitably going to be "too rough" and "make mistakes sometimes," while White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has incorrectly suggested to ICE officers that they have blanket "federal immunity" when carrying out their duties. Meanwhile, DHS recently circulated an internal memorandum advising immigration officers that they may assert broad authority to enter homes without a judicial warrant in certain circumstances, rising concerns that enforcement personnel are being instructed to operate outside of their constitutional limits. Accordingly, we ask that the OIG complete these audits as expeditiously as possible, issue public findings on an emergency basis, and keep our offices apprised of any significant preliminary observations - including through interim updates or briefings - particularly where the OIG identifies urgent deficiencies implicating public safety or compliance with constitutional protections.

Due to the recent string of violent attacks by ICE and CBP in American cities, we ask that the DHS OIG, as part of its ongoing reviews, seek to provide answers to the following questions, along with the questions in our prior letters that have not been answered:

Use of Force

1. Please confirm whether the fatal shootings of Renée Nicole Good, Alex Pretti, and other shooting victims since January 20, 2025 are within the scope of any of the OIG's existing audits and, if not within scope, explain whether the OIG will conduct a separate targeted review or issue interim recommendations related to those shootings. If not, please explain why.
2. How many use-of-force claims has the OIG elected to investigate since January 20, 2025, and how many has it declined to investigate?
3. What guidance, authorization, or other instructions (regardless of how they are communicated) have ICE and CBP agents been given about permissible uses of force? Do these instructions differ from DHS's published Policy on the Use of Force in effect prior to January 20, 2025? Please provide a copy of all iterations of use-of-force guidelines that have been in effect for ICE and CBP agents at any time since January 20, 2025, including those currently in effect.

1. What are ICE's and CBP's operational standards for using less-than-lethal devices like pepper ball guns, tasers, teargas canisters, etc.? Please provide a copy of those instructions, policies and guidance.
2. Please describe how agents are being instructed on use of force during trainings and preparations for enforcement surges?

1. How many use-of-force complaints have been filed directly through the OIG's hotline since January 20, 2025?
2. Does the OIG currently have access to ICE and CBP databases used to track use of force and other claims involving ICE and CBP personnel? How many use-of-force claims have been logged in those databases since January 20, 2025?

Warrants

1. Please provide the breakdown of the percentages of ICE arrests since January 20, 2025 that were performed with: a judicial warrant; an administrative warrant; no warrant. Please provide the same breakdown for each of the three years before January 20, 2025.
2. What is DHS's legal justification for suggesting that an administrative warrant satisfies the Fourth Amendment protection against unauthorized entry into a residence without a signed judicial warrant?
3. How has DHS's policy regarding searches and seizures at residences changed since January 20, 2025? Please provide a copy of any instructions or guidance currently in effect on this subject.
4. Since January 20, 2025, how many times have DHS personnel entered individuals' homes based on only an administrative warrant?
5. How many of those incidents resulted in DHS personnel arresting a U.S. citizen?

Detentions and Arrests of Citizens

1. With respect to the OIG's citizenship determination review:

1. What is DHS's current process for verifying citizenship during enforcement operations?
2. What safeguards exist to prevent wrongful arrests and detentions of citizens?
3. What metrics will the OIG use to evaluate whether ICE is improving its handling of encounters with U.S. citizens?
4. How many U.S. citizens have been arrested, detained, or ordered deported since January 20, 2025?

1. Of those, how many were detained based on an incorrect assessment of their immigration status, and how many were detained for allegedly impeding law enforcement officers?
2. Of those detained for alleged criminal offenses, how many has DHS referred to DOJ for prosecution? How many of those cases has DOJ declined to prosecute?

1. What is the average length of detention for someone detained for immigration enforcement purposes and later determined to be a U.S. citizen?
2. Please describe and provide ICE's and CBP's policies governing collateral arrests and encounters with bystanders. How does DHS track and remediate collateral arrests based on mistaken identities or other factors? How have these policies changed since January 20, 2025?

Recruitment, Vetting, and Training

1. Please describe ICE's and CBP's current hiring standards, background check/vetting process, and onboarding process, and any ways in which those standards and processes have changed since January 20, 2025.

1. How many ICE and CBP agents hired since January 20, 2025 underwent an expedited or abbreviated hiring process? How many were hired with no background check or an abbreviated background check? Please provide the same data for the year prior to January 20, 2025.
2. What vetting is conducted to identify whether ICE and CBP applicants have prior criminal convictions, misconduct, extremist affiliations, or involvement in incidents resulting in use-of-force complaints or civil rights violations?

i. How many applicants with a record of such conduct have been accepted as new CBP or ICE hires since January 20, 2025? Please provide a breakdown for each type of record.

ii. Have any vetting requirements been waived or narrowed since January 20, 2025?

1. Have any hiring practices changed to proactively recruit people with particular political affiliations?
2. How (if at all) is artificial intelligence used in the process of screening and vetting applicants for ICE and CBP?
3. Please describe the training, guidance, or other instructions that ICE and CBP agents receive regarding use of force, deescalation, crowd control, and constitutional rights, including related to encounters with bystanders, journalists, legal observers, and individuals recording enforcement activity. Please explain the trainings' length, format, and topics covered, and provide copies of such materials currently in use.
4. What are ICE's and CBP's training materials, guidance, or other instructions (regardless of how they are communicated) regarding responding to activities protected by the First Amendment, including protections for freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of association? Please provide a copy of any such materials.
5. Please describe the training, guidance, or other instructions that ICE and CBP agents receive related to body-worn cameras, including requirements for camera activation, deactivation, footage retention, and supervisory review?
6. Have ICE or CBP modified their body-worn camera policies or practices since January 20, 2025? If so, please describe those changes and provide copies of any updated guidance.

1. Please describe the training, guidance, or other instructions that ICE and CBP agents receive related to interactions with motor vehicles, including where agents should position themselves in relation to vehicles and how agents may and may not attempt to remove occupants from vehicles. Please describe how these instructions have changed since January 20, 2025, and provide a copy of any such materials.
2. Please describe how agents are instructed, incentivized or otherwise encouraged to meet enforcement quotas, and how such guidance has changed since January 20, 2025.
3. Please describe the training, guidance, or other instructions that ICE and CBP agents receive related to enforcement actions at sensitive locations (schools, hospitals, courthouses, places of worship)?

Investigative Processes & Responding to Misconduct

1. Please evaluate ICE's and CBP's handling of professional misconduct matters involving their agents. As part of this reply, please include an evaluation of the following questions related to CBP's Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), which has assessed the killing of Alex Pretti.

1. How many complaints has CBP's OPR received since January 1, 2025? How many of those complaints are currently open and how many have been resolved?
2. What is the typical length of time CBP OPR takes to resolve complaints, and does OPR have any maximum length of time in which it must resolve a complaint?
3. What is OPR's process for determining which complaints to investigate and for internally resolving complaints?
4. What is OPR's current staffing level and how many OPR members, if any, have been detailed to other DHS components?

1. Has the OIG faced difficulty accessing any ICE or CBP databases in the course of its audits and investigations since January 20, 2025? Please describe any database access issues.

Thank you for your attention to this critical matter. We look forward to your response.

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