Minneapolis, MN — COPAL is deeply saddened and alarmed by reports that another person was killed during an encounter involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, in Biddeford, Maine, and stands in solidarity with his family, loved ones, and community and the countless immigrant families who are once again confronted with the reality that an interaction with immigration enforcement can end in irreversible tragedy.
This shooting comes only six days after ICE agents fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston, Texas. Two deaths involving immigration officers in less than one week cannot be dismissed as unrelated incidents. Together, they raise urgent questions about ICE’s use of deadly force, the safeguards governing enforcement operations, and whether the public can trust agencies to provide timely and complete accounts of their own actions.
These tragedies are deepening fear and uncertainty in immigrant communities across the country, where families are already living under the weight of increasingly aggressive immigration enforcement.
Many details about the Biddeford shooting remain under investigation; one thing is already clear: every use of deadly force by a federal law enforcement agency demands a thorough investigation, immediate transparency, public accountability, and public disclosure of the findings. Public reporting indicates that the agents involved in the Biddeford operation were not wearing body cameras. In the Houston case, witnesses have challenged portions of the government’s account, while local officials have raised concerns about ICE’s transparency and cooperation with investigators. These circumstances demonstrate why internal agency reviews are not sufficient to build public trust.
“Another family is grieving today, and communities across the country are once again asking whether their loved ones will make it home safely,” said Carolina Ortiz, Associate Executive Director of COPAL. These deaths must not become normalized as simply the cost of immigration enforcement. “We cannot become numb to the loss of life during immigration enforcement encounters. Every person, regardless of where they were born or their immigration status, deserves dignity, due process, equal protection, or an impartial investigation when government agents take a life. Communities deserve the truth, and federal agencies must be accountable to the people they serve.”
The consequences extend far beyond Maine and Texas. They are unfolding amid a sharp escalation in immigration enforcement that has left many immigrant families afraid to go to work, seek medical care, attend school, or participate in everyday community life. Enforcement practices that make entire communities afraid of public institutions undermine, rather than advance, public safety.
COPAL calls for:
- A full, transparent, and independent investigation into this fatal shooting.
- The preservation and timely public release of all available video, communications, use-of-force reports, investigative findings, and other relevant evidence, consistent with the family’s rights and the integrity of the investigation.
- Full nationwide deployment and mandatory use of body-worn cameras during immigration enforcement operations, accompanied by clear public release and accountability standards.
- Immediate congressional oversight of ICE’s use-of-force practices and the growing human and community consequences of aggressive immigration enforcement.
We also urge policymakers at every level to reject policies that escalate violence and fear in immigrant communities and instead pursue an immigration system that upholds due process, protects family unity, respects human rights, and recognizes the inherent dignity of every person. Communities are safest when people can live, work, and care for their families without fear that an encounter with immigration enforcement will end in tragedy.
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About COPAL
COPAL Minnesota is a member-based organization driven to improve the quality of life for Minnesota’s Latine communities. For more information, please visit www.copalmn.org.
