DHS, DOJ deny report that FBI won’t look into ICE shootings

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice told WORLD it denied claims in a Sunday report by The New York Times. The report cited anonymous sources saying that the DOJ’s FBI would no longer investigate confrontations, including shootings, that involved U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Instead, Homeland Security Investigations, another DHS agency like ICE, would investigate such incidents, according to claims in the report. The DOJ also confirmed in a separate joint statement that it told The Times the claim was completely false and “fake news.”

How will investigations work going forward? The DHS and DOJ stated that FBI agents will continue to investigate shootings involving ICE officers in keeping with agency policy. DHS agencies are also still required to have committees of their own that can review any shootings their agents are involved in, according to the department’s use-of-force policy. The agencies added that anyone who assaulted an officer would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The FBI was notably involved in investigating the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota earlier this year, along with the non-fatal shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis, according to state law enforcement.

Dig deeper: Read my reports about the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good and the criticisms police use-of-force experts had about the investigations into their deaths.