President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to continue conducting vehicle traffic stops, reversing a temporary suspension announced just one day earlier after two fatal shootings involving ICE agents drew national attention and renewed questions about the agency’s enforcement tactics.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump rejected the pause, calling traffic stops “one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools.”
“We must be strong, tough, and smart, and we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!” Trump wrote. He also urged ICE officers to be “judicious, fair and smart” while carrying out their duties.
The president’s directive came less than 24 hours after ICE leadership reportedly instructed agents to suspend most routine vehicle stops while reviewing enforcement procedures following two fatal encounters.
The latest shooting occurred Monday in Biddeford, Maine, where ICE agents fatally shot 25-year-old Colombian national Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero during an attempted arrest. The Department of Homeland Security said agents fired after Durán Guerrero allegedly drove toward officers, creating what officials described as an immediate threat. Witnesses and surveillance footage have prompted questions about the government’s account, and the shooting is under investigation by the FBI, the Maine Attorney General’s Office, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General.
Last week on Tuesday, July 7th, ICE agents in Houston fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during another enforcement operation. Family members and witnesses have challenged ICE’s version of events, saying Salgado Araujo may not have known the individuals confronting him were federal agents because they arrived in unmarked vehicles. The shooting has also become the subject of multiple investigations.
The two deaths have intensified criticism of the Trump administration’s expanded immigration enforcement strategy. Civil rights organizations, immigrant advocacy groups, and some members of Congress argue that increasingly aggressive street-level enforcement has heightened the risk of deadly confrontations while eroding public trust in federal law enforcement.
For Tribal nations and Native communities, the developments carry broader implications. Many Tribal leaders have long voiced concerns about aggressive federal law enforcement activities occurring on or near Tribal lands without meaningful consultation. Native advocates also warn that expanded immigration enforcement raises questions about racial profiling, civil liberties, and the exercise of federal police powers in communities that have historically experienced disproportionate government surveillance and enforcement.
Although Trump has ordered ICE to resume traffic stops, the agency now faces growing pressure to increase transparency surrounding its use-of-force policies. Advocacy organizations continue to call for mandatory body-worn cameras, independent investigations of officer-involved shootings, and stronger congressional oversight of immigration enforcement operations.
The investigations into both fatal shootings remain ongoing.
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