Border czar Tom Homan announced Sunday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement will require officers to wear body cameras during all vehicle stops, following two fatal shootings involving ICE agents in Texas and Maine this month.
“They exonerate more law enforcement than they convict, and I want officers to wear body cameras because I want the American people to see what the officers saw when they took that action,” Homan said on “Fox and Friends Weekend.”
The directive comes after ICE agents fatally shot two men in separate traffic stops just six days apart. The first shooting occurred July 7 in Houston, where agents killed a Mexican national. The second happened July 13 in Biddeford, Maine, where an ICE officer shot and killed a driver from Colombia after authorities say he attempted to run down agents with his vehicle. Neither incident was captured on body camera footage.
The shootings triggered protests in Maine, Houston, and Boston and renewed calls for mandatory recording of ICE enforcement operations.
Homan told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that the cameras were ready. “The cameras have been purchased right now,” he said. “They’re training the trainer in deploying the cameras nationwide.” He said the rollout had been delayed by funding gaps caused by a partial government shutdown earlier this year.
ICE launched a body-camera pilot program in 2024, initially deploying cameras to officers in five cities: Baltimore, Buffalo, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. The Trump administration moved in early 2025 to slow the program, urging Congress to cut its funding by 75%. Then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in February 2026 the national rollout would proceed “as funding is available.”
Following the back-to-back July shootings, Homan initially suspended most ICE vehicle stops to allow for a procedural review. Within 24 hours, President Trump directed agents to resume them.
At least seven people have been shot and killed during federal immigration enforcement operations since January 2025, when Trump launched his mass deportations push after returning to office. ICE has faced escalating legal and political pressure over its tactics, with critics demanding greater transparency.
Homan has insisted agents acted properly in both incidents and that body cameras would vindicate officers when force is necessary.
