The Record the †rump Regime Doesn't Want You to See: Federal Immigration Shootings Since January 20, 2025
- Kal Inois
- 13 hours ago
- 30 min read
A documented record of IÇE and ÇBP use of force compiled from independent investigative reporting. Why? Because the †rump regime will not disclose it.
There is no official government database of shootings by federal immigration agents. The †rump regime does not publish a comprehensive list. IÇE does not hold press conferences about most incidents. DH$ does not proactively disclose when its agents fire their weapons at civilians. In many cases, the agency issues no statement at all. In other cases, it issues statements that are later contradicted by video evidence, local law enforcement investigations, and court records.
The suppression is not passive. It is built into the system. In 2025, the †rump regime granted IÇE the same secrecy designation previously reserved for the ƒBI and Seçret Serviçe, meaning all personally identifiable information about IÇE personnel is now formally withheld from Freedom of Information Act requests. This applies even in cases where agents have shot or killed people. ÇBP received the same designation. The American Immigration Council filed a FOIA lawsuit specifically requesting a list of IÇE and ÇBP databases. The agencies refused to provide one. The Washington Post reported that 16 DH$ shootings since July 2025 were prematurely declared justified by federal officials before investigations were even completed. And according to the Center for American Progress, the †rump regime has reduced IÇE agent training hours by 41%, passed recruits who used excessive force in training exercises, and now requires only 344 hours of training before agents begin working. The average for state and local police academies is 806 hours. More agents. Less training. More secrecy. No accountability.
What you are about to read was compiled not by the federal government but by independent journalists. The Trace, a nonprofit investigative newsroom focused on gun violence, built a running tracker of every incident it could document. Capital & Main, ProPublica, NBC News, local outlets, and legal filings filled in additional details. The incidents listed here are almost certainly an undercount. Several agents involved have not been identified. Several incidents have not been publicly acknowledged at all.
Since January 20, 2025, the first day of the †rump regime's second term, there have been at least 34 documented shootings by IÇE and ÇBP agents, resulting in at least 9 deaths. There have been at least 18 additional documented incidents involving less-lethal weapons: rubber bullets, pepper balls, and chemical irritant projectiles, resulting in serious injuries including blindings and the surgical removal of an eye. At least 6 additional people have been killed in enforcement-related incidents not involving gunfire: deaths ruled homicide by county medical examiners, a farmworker who fell fleeing a raid, a man struck by a car fleeing agents on a highway, and two drowning deaths during a ÇBP vehicle pursuit. Thirty-one to thirty-two people died in IÇE detention in 2025 alone, the deadliest year in over two decades, with at least 16 more dying in the first months of 2026. None of the agents involved in any of these incidents has been criminally charged. The true total number of people who have died as a direct consequence of †rump regime immigration enforcement since January 20, 2025 is not known. The government has made certain of that. What is known is that it exceeds 60. What is certain is that every number in this report is an undercount.
The government will not tell you this. We will.
Fatal Shootings: Six People Killed by Federal Immigration Agents
Six people have been shot and killed by IÇE or ÇBP agents since January 20, 2025. Three of them were United States citizens. In at least two cases, video evidence directly contradicts the official government account. In none of the cases has any agent been criminally charged.
Ruben Ray Martinez, 23 | United States Citizen | March 15, 2025 | South Padre Island, Texas
Ruben Ray Martinez was 23 years old, a U.S. citizen from San Antonio, Texas, who had just turned 23 and was planning to enroll in trade school to become a mechanic. On March 15, 2025, he was shot and killed by an IÇE agent during a traffic encounter on South Padre Island. He is considered the first person killed by IÇE during the †rump regime's second term. His death was not publicly disclosed as an IÇE killing at the time. The agency's involvement was concealed for nearly a year, until the watchdog group American Oversight obtained records through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit in February 2026. His mother, Rachel Reyes, told NPR she only learned IÇE was responsible months after her son's death. "He thought he'd have more time," she said. "We all thought he would have more time." The agent who killed him has not been identified. No charges have been filed.
Silverio Villegas González, 38 | September 2025 | Franklin Park, Illinois
Silverio Villegas González was 38 years old. He was shot and killed during a traffic stop in Franklin Park, a suburb near Chicago, in September 2025. DH$ claimed an agent had been "seriously injured" after being dragged by his vehicle. According to Stateline, that account has not been independently verified and questions remain about the circumstances of the shooting. No charges have been filed.
Isaias Sanchez Barboza, 31 | December 11, 2025 | Rio Grande City, Texas
Isaias Sanchez Barboza was a 31-year-old Mexican national. On December 11, 2025, ÇBP agents spotted a group of people in camouflage clothing walking north near the U.S.-Mexico border west of the Rio Grande City Port of Entry. As agents approached, the group scattered. An agent attempted to apprehend Barboza. According to ÇBP, a two-minute struggle followed. The agent shot Barboza three times. Other agents applied chest seals and began CPR. He was transported to Starr County Hospital and pronounced dead at 5:08 p.m. It is unclear whether any video of the encounter exists. The Texas Department of Public Safety Ranger Division is investigating. The agent has not been publicly identified. No charges have been filed. Sources: PBS NewsHour, NBC News.
Keith Porter Jr., 43 | United States Citizen | December 31, 2025 | Northridge, California
Keith Porter Jr. was a 43-year-old Black father of two daughters. He was shot and killed on New Year's Eve by off-duty IÇE agent Brian Palacios outside the Village Pointe Apartments in Northridge, California. His family says he had been firing a gun into the air to celebrate the new year. DH$ called it self-defense. The Los Angeles County coroner ruled his death a homicide. Cause of death: multiple gunshot wounds, Coroner Case No. 2026-00002. Court records show Palacios had used racist slurs about Black people and Latinos and had a prior domestic violence report and restraining order. Porter's family attorney has called for a hate crime investigation. No security cameras captured the incident. Agent Palacios has not been charged. Porter left behind two daughters, ages 9 and 20.
Renée Nicole Good, 37 | United States Citizen | January 7, 2026 | Minneapolis, Minnesota
Renée Nicole Good was a 37-year-old mother of three young children. She was shot and killed by IÇE agent Jonathan Ross while sitting in her car during an enforcement operation on a residential street in Minneapolis. Video evidence shows her vehicle moving away from agents when Ross fired three shots through her windshield. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner ruled her death a homicide. On his own body camera, Ross was recorded calling her a "f***ing bitch" after shooting her. DH$ Secretary Kristi Noem and President †rump both publicly blamed Good for her own death before any investigation was complete. Congressional Democrats moved to subpoena all records and footage. Republican members of Congress blocked the motion. Good's car, a key piece of evidence, remains shrink-wrapped in an ƒBI warehouse, never examined by state investigators. No charges have been filed.
Alex Pretti, 37 | United States Citizen | January 24, 2026 | Minneapolis, Minnesota
Alex Pretti was a 37-year-old intensive care nurse at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Minneapolis, a licensed gun owner with no criminal record other than traffic tickets. He was shot and killed by ÇBP agents Jesus Ochoa and Raymundo Gutierrez outside a donut shop in downtown Minneapolis while filming an enforcement operation on his phone. He stepped between an agent and a woman who had been pushed to the ground. He was pepper-sprayed, tackled, and surrounded by approximately six agents. He was shot ten times in the back. One agent was captured on video applauding as Pretti was shot. DH$ labeled him a domestic terrorist. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara confirmed he was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry. Video reviewed and verified by Reuters, the BBC, the Wall Street Journal, and the Associated Press directly contradicts DH$'s account. Federal agents physically blocked state investigators from accessing the scene. Minnesota and Hennepin County have sued the †rump regime for withholding evidence. No charges have been filed.
Death Beyond the Gun: When Federal Enforcement Kills Without Pulling a Trigger
Not every death caused by federal immigration enforcement involves a bullet. The six cases below involve people who died not from gunfire but as a direct consequence of decisions made by federal agents. None of these deaths appear in The Trace's shooter database. None are counted in any government use-of-force disclosure. Three have been formally ruled homicide by county medical examiners. In none of these cases has any agent been criminally charged.
Dr. Linda Davis | Chatham County, Georgia
Dr. Linda Davis was a special education teacher at Herman W. Hesse K-8 School in Savannah, Georgia, a wife and mother of four, on her way to work on the morning of February 16, 2026. She was killed when Oscar Vasquez-Lopez, a Guatemalan national fleeing an IÇE traffic stop, ran a red light and crashed into her car. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Vasquez-Lopez has been charged by Chatham County Police with first-degree vehicular homicide, reckless driving, driving without a valid license, and failure to obey a traffic control device. No IÇE agent has been charged.
The Chatham County Police Department was not notified about the IÇE operation beforehand. The county's own pursuit policy limits vehicle chases to situations where there are reasonable grounds to believe someone has committed or will commit a forcible felony. Vasquez-Lopez had no prior criminal record. Under the county's standard, the pursuit should never have happened. The Center for American Progress states plainly: had IÇE followed the county standard, Dr. Davis may still be alive today. DH$ responded to her death by blaming "politicians and the media constantly demonizing IÇE officers." They said nothing about why agents initiated a high-speed pursuit of a man with no criminal record without notifying local police.
Dr. Linda Davis did not die from a bullet fired by a federal agent. She died because of how a federal agent drove.
Nurul Amin Shah Alam, 56 | Buffalo, New York | February 24, 2026 | Ruled homicide
Nurul Amin Shah Alam was 56 years old, a refugee from Myanmar living legally in the United States. He spoke almost no English. He was blind in one eye and had very limited vision in the other. He had spent nearly a year in the Erie County jail on felony assault charges stemming from a 2025 encounter with Buffalo police in which advocates say he wandered onto the wrong property and did not understand officers' commands because he could not see or speak English. In early February 2026, the charges were reduced to misdemeanors. His family posted bail.
On February 19, 2026, ÇBP agents transported Shah Alam from the Erie County jail upon his release. They dropped him off alone at a Tim Hortons coffee shop in Buffalo. It was night. The shop was closed. He was nearly blind. He spoke almost no English. He did not know the neighborhood. ÇBP said the Tim Hortons was chosen as "a warm, safe location" near his last known address. His family spent five days searching for him. His body was found on February 24, four miles from the Tim Hortons.
The Erie County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide. Cause of death: complications of a perforated duodenal ulcer, brought on by hypothermia and dehydration. Erie County Health Commissioner Gale Burstein explained that Shah Alam had developed what is known as a stress ulcer from dehydration and cold exposure. The ulcer breached his intestinal wall, creating a painful medical emergency that required rapid treatment. He had none. New York Governor Kathy Hochul called it "cruelty and inhumanity." Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said "this should not have happened." No ÇBP agent has been charged.
Elena Catarina Morales-Chan, 29, and an unnamed 14-year-old boy | Edcouch, Texas | March 28, 2025 | Both ruled homicide
On March 28, 2025, ÇBP agents in the Rio Grande Valley were pursuing a vehicle they suspected of involvement in human smuggling near Edcouch, Texas. During the pursuit, the driver accelerated into a flooded area and the vehicle went into a canal. Some people in the vehicle were rescued. Elena Catarina Morales-Chan, 29, was pronounced dead at the scene. A 14-year-old passenger was found dead in the submerged vehicle. The Hidalgo County Forensic Center conducted autopsies on both. The preliminary cause of death was drowning. The manner of death was ruled homicide for both. ÇBP charged the driver of the vehicle with human smuggling. ÇBP's Office of Professional Responsibility is reviewing the incident. The agent who initiated the pursuit has not been publicly identified. No agent has been charged.
Jaime Alanís García, 57 | Camarillo, California | July 12, 2025
Jaime Alanís García was 57 years old, a Mexican farmworker who had worked at Glass House Farms in Camarillo, California for ten years. He sent money home to his wife and daughter in Michoacán. On July 10, 2025, IÇE agents, ÇBP officers, National Guard troops, and military vehicles descended on the farm in a massive enforcement operation. Agents arrested 319 people. During the chaos, Alanís García climbed to the roof of a greenhouse. He called family members to say he was hiding. He fell approximately 30 feet, breaking his neck, fracturing his skull, and severing an artery. He was airlifted to Ventura County Medical Center and placed on life support. His family removed life support two days later. He was pronounced dead on July 12, 2025.
DH$ claimed Alanís García was not in custody or being pursued when he climbed the roof. His family and attorneys filed a federal court claim alleging IÇE agents conducted an illegal search and seizure and used excessive force. Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum announced her administration was exploring a lawsuit against IÇE on behalf of the family. His niece Yesenia Duran told reporters he was "hiding, trying to stay alive." His family said he "was not just a farm worker but a human being who deserved dignity." Democracy Now! called him the first known person to die in an IÇE raid under the †rump administration's immigration crackdown. No agent has been charged.
Josué Castro Rivera, 24 | Norfolk, Virginia | October 23, 2025
Josué Castro Rivera was 24 years old, from Honduras, and had lived in the United States for four years. He was on his way to a gardening job on the morning of October 23, 2025, when IÇE agents pulled over his vehicle on Interstate 264 in Norfolk, Virginia, as part of what DH$ described as a "targeted, intelligence-based immigration enforcement operation." As agents began detaining the occupants, Castro Rivera fled on foot onto the busy interstate. He was struck and killed by a 2002 Ford pickup truck. He was pronounced dead at the scene. An IÇE officer administered CPR but could not save him.
His brother Henry Castro told reporters his name was Josué, not Jose as the federal government initially listed him. "He didn't deserve everything that happened to him," Henry Castro said. "He had a very good heart." Castro Rivera had been sending money home to family in Honduras. DH$ responded to his death by blaming "every politician, activist and reporter who continue to spread propaganda and misinformation about IÇE's mission." Virginia State Police, who were not involved in the pursuit, are investigating the crash. No IÇE agent has been charged. Sources: NBC News, PBS NewsHour.
None of these six people — Dr. Linda Davis, Nurul Amin Shah Alam, Elena Catarina Morales-Chan, the unnamed 14-year-old boy, Jaime Alanís García, or Josué Castro Rivera — appear in any federal use-of-force database. No agent pulled a trigger in any of their deaths. So the government does not count them, does not report them, and does not acknowledge that its enforcement choices killed them. The absence of a gun in the equation is the only reason their deaths are invisible in the official record.
Shootings With Injuries: Bullets Hit People
The following incidents involve documented cases in which immigration agents fired weapons and struck civilians with live ammunition. In several cases the official DH$ account was later contradicted by video, local police, or court filings. In none of these cases has any agent been criminally charged.
August 2025 | San Bernardino, California
Federal immigration agents fired three times at a family's vehicle during an enforcement operation in San Bernardino, California. DH$ maintained the shooting was justified because agents had been struck by the vehicle. Surveillance footage shows an agent breaking the driver-side window moments before shots were fired. The footage does not show agents being struck by the vehicle. Source: Stateline.
October 4, 2025 | Brighton Park, Chicago, Illinois
ÇBP agent Charles Exum shot 30-year-old Marimar Martinez five times in the arm as residents confronted agents in the area. An unidentified agent on body camera footage was recorded telling Martinez "Do something, bitch" before Exum opened fire. Martinez was charged with felony assault after agents accused her of ramming her vehicle into theirs. The charges were dropped by the Depårtment of Justiçe in November after video evidence contradicted the federal account. In text messages entered into evidence, Exum wrote: "I fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys." He continued: "Shit happens. I'm up for another round of 'f*** around and find out.'" He also wrote: "Sweet. My 15 mins of fame." Exum has not been charged. Source: Dallas Weekly / Word in Black.
October 30, 2025 | Ontario, California | Carlos Jimenez, 25 | United States Citizen
Carlos Jimenez was 25 years old, a U.S. citizen, a father of three, and a food bank worker. On October 30, 2025, he was driving to work in Ontario, California, when he encountered IÇE agents blocking traffic near an elementary school bus stop where children were about to gather. He stopped his car to warn the agents. His attorney told ABC News that after an agent pulled out pepper spray, Jimenez began to maneuver his vehicle to get around them. An agent shot him in the shoulder. He survived. DH$ said the agent "feared for his life" and fired in self-defense after Jimenez allegedly reversed toward agents. His attorney said he was shot in the back shoulder, through the rear passenger window, as he drove away. Jimenez was subsequently indicted for assaulting a federal officer. His attorneys said the case "fits a broader pattern of escalated immigration enforcement" and called on the Attorney General's office and Ontario Police Department to investigate and release body camera footage. No agent has been charged. Sources: ABC News, Congresswoman Norma Torres.
December 24, 2025 | Glen Burnie, Maryland | Christmas Eve
IÇE agents shot and wounded Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins three times in a residential neighborhood in Glen Burnie, Maryland on Christmas Eve. DH$ initially claimed both people injured were inside the van. Anne Arundel County police publicly contradicted that account. One of the injured men, Salomon Serrano-Esquivel, had been arrested hours earlier in a different county and was already handcuffed in the back of an IÇE vehicle when it was struck. He could not brace himself because of the cuffs. DH$ changed its story only after local police went public. Sousa-Martins told investigators agents approached him yelling "We ran your tags, we know you're an overstay. We're going to break the glass." and that he said "Why are you doing this? I'm a U.S. citizen." Sources: CNN, The Baltimore Banner.
January 8, 2026 | Medical clinic parking lot, Portland, Oregon
ÇBP agents shot and wounded Luis David Nino Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras in the parking lot of Adventist Health Primary Care in Southeast Portland, Oregon. Their red Toyota Tacoma pickup had been boxed in by six agents in four unmarked cars attempting a traffic stop. DH$ immediately claimed both victims were members of the Venezuelan criminal organization Tren de Aragua. By February 2026, federal prosecutors told the court they were 'not suggesting' Nino-Moncada was a gang member. Court records described Zambrano-Contreras as a victim of sexual assault and robbery rather than a suspect. The Oregon Attorney General and the ƒBI both opened investigations. Source: OPB, Oregon Capital Chronicle
January 14, 2026 | North Minneapolis, Minnesota
An IÇE officer shot and wounded a man during an enforcement operation in north Minneapolis connected to the pursuit of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan national. Federal authorities said two bystanders attacked an officer with a shovel. Video later showed no sustained shovel attack. Federal prosecutors charged two bystanders with assault on a federal officer and then dropped the charges a month later, writing that "newly discovered evidence in this matter is materially inconsistent with the allegations." Two IÇE agents were placed on administrative leave for giving false statements under oath. Sources: The Trace, NBC News.
January 27, 2026 | Arivaca, Arizona
U.S. citizen Patrick Gary Schlegel was shot and critically wounded by ÇBP agents near Arivaca, Arizona. Agents suspected him of human trafficking. When they attempted a traffic stop, he fled on foot. Schlegel allegedly fired at an agent, and the agent returned fire, according to the Pima County Sheriff. Schlegel was charged with assault on a federal officer. Source: The Trace.
February 22, 2026 | Pittsburg, New Hampshire | U.S.-Canada border
A ÇBP agent shot and wounded a person near the U.S.-Canada border in Pittsburg, New Hampshire. An ƒBI spokesperson said the person fired at the agent first and the agent returned fire. The agent was not injured. Source: The Trace.
April 7, 2026 | Patterson, California
IÇE agents shot and critically wounded Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez during a traffic stop in Patterson, California. Acting IÇE Director Todd Lyons said Hernandez was wanted in El Salvador for questioning in connection with a murder. Agents claimed he tried to run them over when they attempted his arrest. Video shows him backing up and attempting to flee. His attorney said he was on his way to work when stopped. Sources: The Trace, kcra.com, nbcnews.com.
Shots Fired: Documented Discharges With No Reported Injuries
The following incidents involve documented cases in which immigration agents discharged firearms but no injuries from gunfire were reported.
January 21, 2026 | Willowbrook, Los Angeles, California
A federal agent fired during an immigration enforcement operation in Willowbrook, an unincorporated community in Los Angeles. No one was injured. DH$ said agents were investigating a human smuggling operation and that a suspect rammed their vehicle. Sources: The Trace, nytimes.com.
February 10, 2026 | Dover, New Jersey
An IÇE agent fired at a truck during the arrest of Jesus Fabian Lopez-Banegas, a Honduran national. DH$ claimed Lopez-Banegas attempted to evade arrest by ramming the agents' vehicle. Sources: The Trace, nj.com.
Less-Lethal Force With Serious Injury: Blindings, Surgeries, and Permanent Damage
The following incidents involve less-lethal weapons: rubber bullets, pepper balls, and chemical irritant projectiles. The results in some cases were serious and in some cases permanent injuries. The †rump regime and DH$ have characterized these weapons as non-lethal. The outcomes below tell a different story.
January 8, 2026 | Minneapolis, Minnesota
IÇE agents fired pepper balls at protesters outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis. One agent aimed a long gun at someone filming the scene. Another agent pointed a handgun at a protester. Sources: The Trace, gunviolencearchive.org.
January 9, 2026 | Santa Ana, California | Two protesters blinded
"I had shards of metal, glass, and plastic behind my eye and in my skull. They said it was a miracle I survived." That is what one of two protesters told reporters after immigration agents fired less-lethal rounds at close range during a rally outside the federal building in Santa Ana, California. Both protesters were blinded by the projectiles. A DH$ official said members of the crowd had been throwing rocks, bottles, and fireworks at officers. Sources: pasadenastarnews.com, ktla.com, latimes.com.
January 11, 2026 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Two journalists injured
Two journalists were injured when IÇE agents fired pepper balls during a demonstration outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis. Sources: apnews.com, Press Freedom Tracker.
January 24, 2026 | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Nur-D
Matthew James Obadiah Allen, a Minneapolis rapper who performs as Nur-D, was shot with rubber bullets and pepper balls while protesting the killing of Alex Pretti by ÇBP agents in Minneapolis. Source: The Trace.
March 28, 2026 | Los Angeles, California | Tucker Collins, 18 | Right eye surgically removed
Tucker Collins was 18 years old, a University of Southern California student, attending a "No Kings" demonstration in downtown Los Angeles. He was filming the protest when a DH$ agent shot him in the eye with a projectile containing chemical irritants. His right eye was surgically removed as a result of his injuries. His attorney said he was not engaged in any threatening behavior when he was shot. Sources: latimes.com, ktla.com.
The Pattern: DH$ Said One Thing. The Evidence Said Another.
Across incident after incident, DH$ has issued statements about its agents' use of force that were later contradicted by video footage, local law enforcement investigations, court records, and witness testimony. This is not a series of communication errors. It is a documented pattern of an agency that lies about what its agents do and then faces no consequences for lying.
Ruben Ray Martinez, Texas, March 2025. IÇE concealed its involvement in the killing of a U.S. citizen for nearly a year. The public only learned IÇE was responsible when a watchdog group forced disclosure through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit.
San Bernardino, California, August 2025. DH$ said agents were struck by a vehicle before shooting at it. Surveillance footage shows an agent breaking the driver-side window before shots were fired. The footage does not show agents being struck.
Marimar Martinez, Chicago, October 2025. Agents accused Martinez of ramming her vehicle into theirs and charged her with felony assault. Video evidence contradicted the federal account. The Depårtment of Justiçe dropped the charges. Agent Charles Exum, who shot Martinez five times and bragged about it in text messages entered into evidence, has not been charged.
Glen Burnie, Maryland, December 24, 2025. DH$ claimed both men injured in the Christmas Eve shooting were in the van that was fired upon. Anne Arundel County police publicly contradicted that account. One of the injured men was already handcuffed in the back of an IÇE vehicle. DH$ changed its story only after local police went public.
Renée Good, Minneapolis, January 7, 2026. DH$ and President †rump said Good tried to run over officers before any investigation was complete. Video shows her vehicle moving away from agents when she was shot. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner ruled it a homicide. DH$ Secretary Noem then labeled Good's death an "act of domestic terrorism." DH$ subsequently shifted to blaming ÇBP and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.
Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis, Minneapolis, January 14, 2026. Agents claimed bystanders attacked an officer with a shovel. Video showed no sustained shovel attack. Two agents were placed on administrative leave for giving false statements under oath. Assault charges against the bystanders were dropped when prosecutors found newly discovered evidence was "materially inconsistent" with what agents had claimed.
Alex Pretti, Minneapolis, January 24, 2026. DH$ Secretary Noem initially said agents killed Pretti because he wanted to "attack" them. Video verified by four major international news organizations shows him filming on his phone and going to help a woman who had been pushed down. DH$ subsequently shifted its account.
Georgetown Law professor and former DOJ civil rights litigator Christy Lopez reviewed The Trace's incident list and told reporters: "Everything about these incidents indicates that these are probably shootings that did not need to happen. IÇE agents can't prevent everything, but they have the ability to de-escalate situations. Instead, we see the opposite. They're actually stoking this inordinate amount of fear and this hypervigilance, and they should be trying to tamp it down. But they're not."
The Wall Street Journal separately identified at least 13 instances of immigration officers firing at or into civilian vehicles since July 2025. That is a tactic the Depårtment of Justiçe itself has trained officers to avoid and that many law enforcement agencies across the country have banned outright. DH$ has not adopted that standard.
Undertrained, Unscreened, and Unaccountable: How DH$ Built This
The shootings documented in this report did not emerge from a vacuum. According to an April 2026 report by the Center for American Progress, the †rump regime has systematically dismantled the training, screening, and accountability standards that exist to prevent exactly this kind of violence.
Under the †rump regime, IÇE has reduced training hours by 41 percent, according to an IÇE whistleblower. The agency now requires only 344 hours of training before agents begin working in the field. The average for state and local police academies is 806 hours. Recruits who used excessive force during training exercises were passed anyway. Specific use-of-force instruction was cut. The mechanisms used to track and discipline misconduct were dismantled. The minimum age requirement to become an agent was dropped from 21 to 18. The ƒBI requires its special agents to be at least 23. Most state and local police departments require officers to be at least 21. IÇE now sends 18-year-olds into American communities with firearms, less than half the training of a local police officer, and no functioning system to hold them accountable when they hurt someone.
The Center for American Progress also found that DH$ has been using racist imagery in its recruitment materials and has failed to implement screening policies to identify extremist affiliations or histories of misconduct before hiring. Oregon requires background investigations to assess applicants' tendencies toward diverse cultures, races, and ethnicities. Minnesota uses standardized personality screening to identify aggressiveness and dishonesty. Iowa prevents officers fired for misconduct from being hired elsewhere in the state. California maintains a statewide database tracking misconduct and use-of-force incidents. DH$ does none of this.
The vehicle pursuit and shooting pattern documented throughout this report is a direct consequence of deliberate policy failures. The Center for American Progress found that departments prohibiting shooting at fleeing vehicles have reduced the number of police shootings and the racial disparities in those shootings without increasing officer injuries or deaths. Milwaukee rolled back its vehicle pursuit restrictions and saw a 15-fold increase in the number of pursuits. DH$ has moved in Milwaukee's direction, not away from it.
Deaths beyond the gun. Six cases documented earlier in this report show that federal enforcement kills in ways that never appear in any use-of-force database. Dr. Linda Davis was killed when an IÇE traffic stop caused a fleeing driver to crash into her car on her morning commute. Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a nearly blind refugee, was dropped by ÇBP at a closed coffee shop in Buffalo at night and found dead four miles away five days later, his death ruled homicide by the Erie County Medical Examiner. Elena Catarina Morales-Chan and an unnamed 14-year-old boy drowned when a vehicle fled a ÇBP pursuit into a canal, both deaths ruled homicide by the Hidalgo County Forensic Center. Jaime Alanís García fell 30 feet from a greenhouse roof fleeing a massive IÇE raid. Josué Castro Rivera was struck and killed by a pickup truck on a Virginia interstate as he ran from agents. No agent has been charged in any of these six cases.
This is the system the †rump regime has built: agents hired at 18, trained for less than half the hours required of local police, passed through training even when they used excessive force, sent into communities with use-of-force instruction removed, and shielded from accountability by ƒBI-level secrecy designations that prevent the public from even learning their names. The shootings in this report are not aberrations. They are the predictable output of a system designed to produce them.
Who Is Doing the Counting: Because the Government Won't
There is no official federal database of shootings by immigration agents. The †rump regime does not publish one. IÇE does not maintain a public use-of-force log. The agency's public statements about individual incidents have repeatedly proven inaccurate. So journalists built their own record. The Trace has documented at least 24 shooting incidents and 18 less-lethal munitions incidents since the enforcement surge began. Wikipedia's running tally puts the total at at least 34 shootings resulting in at least 9 deaths since January 20, 2025. At least 5 of those shot were U.S. citizens. Capital & Main counted 13 people shot between September 2025 and February 2026 alone, five of them fatally. The American Prospect launched its own tracker. None of these counts is complete. The true number is higher.
The identities of most agents involved in these shootings have been kept secret. Five have been identified by journalists using public records, over the objection of the federal government. None of the five has been criminally charged.
This is what impunity looks like. And it is operating in your name, with your tax dollars, in your country.
What You Can Do
Call your representatives. The easiest way to reach your senators and representatives by phone is through 5calls.org, a free tool that provides direct phone numbers and scripts. Current active issues include "Oppose Healthcare Cuts to Fund IÇE and Illegal War" and "No War With Iran". When you call, demand a full independent investigation into every documented shooting by a federal immigration agent since January 20, 2025. Demand that Congress exercise oversight of IÇE and ÇBP use of force.
Demand that the identities of all agents involved in shootings be made public. Demand accountability for the killings of Ruben Ray Martinez, Keith Porter, Renée Good, Alex Pretti, Jaime Alanís García, and Josué Castro Rivera, and for the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam. You can also find your representatives through congress.gov/members/find-your-member or text RESIST to 50409 via Resistbot.
Record everything. You have the right to record federal agents from a safe distance in a public space. Do not interfere. But record. In case after case documented in this report, video evidence was the only check on the regime's narrative. It was video that contradicted the government's account of Renée Good's death. It was video that got Marimar Martinez's charges dropped. It was video that exposed agents lying under oath in Minneapolis. Your phone is accountability. Use it.
Read the full companion report. This document covers shootings. For the full documented record of IÇE's deportation of U.S. citizens, detention of Americans without cause, and killing of U.S. citizens, read our companion report: "This Is Not a Mistake. This Is a System: The †rump Regime Is Deporting American Citizens and You Could Be Next," also published by Citizens Against Tyranny at citizensagainstyrannynetwork.org.
Support the organizations documenting this. The Trace (thetrace.org), the American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org), the American Immigration Council (americanimmigrationcouncil.org), and the National Immigration Project (nipnlg.org) are doing the work the government refuses to do. They need support.
Share this. Print it. Post it. The most powerful accountability tool available is an informed community that refuses to look away.
References
1. How Many People Have Been Shot in †rump's Immigration Raids? | The Trace, updated April 2026. Primary source for the running tracker of shootings and less-lethal incidents by IÇE and ÇBP agents since June 2025.
2. Federal Immigration Agent Shootings Dataset | The Gun Violence Data Hub / The Trace. The underlying dataset compiled by The Trace documenting immigration agent shooting incidents.
3. List of Shootings by U.S. Immigration Agents in the Second †rump Administration | Wikipedia, updated April 2026. Source for the aggregate count of at least 34 shootings resulting in at least 9 deaths since January 20, 2025, and the Wall Street Journal's finding of 13 incidents of agents firing into civilian vehicles.
4. 'No Peace': Nearly a Year After Her Son's Death, She Learned That IÇE Was Responsible | NPR, April 2026. Source for the killing of Ruben Ray Martinez, the year-long concealment of IÇE's involvement, and his mother Rachel Reyes's account.
5. Records: Texan Killed by IÇE Months Before Minneapolis Woman | Texas Tribune, February 2026. Source for the American Oversight FOIA records and the circumstances of the South Padre Island shooting.
6. Keith Porter, Killed by IÇE Agent Brian Palacios | Hollywood LA News, January 2026. Source for the Los Angeles County coroner's ruling of homicide, Coroner Case No. 2026-00002.
7. IÇE Agents' Racist Remarks and Misconduct Revealed in Court Records and Footage | Dallas Weekly / Word in Black, March 2026. Source for Palacios court records, Ross body camera, Ochoa and Gutierrez named as Pretti's killers, agent applause video, Exum texts, and IÇE training document on deadly force.
8. A Second U.S. Citizen Was Killed by Federal Forces in Minneapolis | PBS NewsHour, January 2026. Source for Alex Pretti's killing and Minneapolis Police Chief O'Hara's confirmation of his lawful gun permit.
9. Months After the IÇE Shootings in Minnesota, a Federal Probe Remains Elusive | NPR, April 2026. Source for Minnesota's lawsuit against the †rump regime and the ongoing obstruction of state investigations.
10. Killings by Immigration Enforcement Agents in Minnesota Expose Deepening Rule of Law Crisis | International Bar Association, February 2026. Source for the rule-of-law analysis of the Minneapolis killings.
11. Footage, Documents at Odds With DH$ Accounts of Immigration Enforcement Incidents | Stateline, January 2026. Source for San Bernardino August 2025 shooting, Franklin Park Illinois killing, Glen Burnie Maryland shooting, and Wall Street Journal vehicle shooting finding.
12. Department of Homeland Security Changes Story of Maryland IÇE Shooting After Local Police Release Contradicting Details | CNN, January 2026. Source for DH$'s revised account of the Glen Burnie Christmas Eve shooting.
13. †rump's DH$ Immigration Enforcement Officers Shot 14 People From September 2025 to February 2026 | NBC News, updated March 2026. Source for the compiled list of shooting incidents and individual case details.
14. A Running Count of How Many People IÇE Has Killed and Injured | The American Prospect, updated 2026. Source for the American Prospect's independent tracker of IÇE killings and injuries.
15. "Stolen from Us": Family Demands Justice for Keith Porter, Black Father Killed by Off-Duty IÇE Agent | Democracy Now!, January 2026. Source for family account and community response in the Porter killing.
16. Off-Duty IÇE Agent Killed a Black Man in Los Angeles. Why No Arrest? | Sacramento Observer / Capital & Main, January 2026. Source for legal analysis of the Porter case and LA County District Attorney's review.
17. IÇE Has Been Granted the Same Level of Secrecy as the ƒBI | American Immigration Council, March 2025. Source for the †rump regime's grant of ƒBI-level secrecy designation to IÇE and ÇBP, blocking FOIA disclosure of all agent personally identifiable information, including in shooting cases.
18. Fact Sheet: Mandating 21st Century Policing Standards for Federal Immigration Enforcement | Center for American Progress, April 2026. Source for the 41% reduction in IÇE training hours under the †rump regime, the passing of recruits who used excessive force in training, and the comparison of 344 IÇE training hours to the 806-hour state and local police academy average.
19. What We Know So Far About the Border Patrol Shooting in Portland | OPB (Oregon Public Broadcasting), January 2026. Source for the circumstances of the January 8, 2026 ÇBP shooting of Luis David Nino Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras in the Adventist Health Primary Care parking lot in Southeast Portland, including the six-agent configuration, the shooting into the driver-side window, and the subsequent ƒBI investigation.
20. Pair Shot by U.S. Border Patrol in Portland Charged With Illegal Entry, Assaulting Federal Officer | Oregon Capital Chronicle, January 2026. Source for the defense attorneys' statements challenging DH$'s Tren de Aragua claim, and the federal public defender's statement that the government "has a well-documented history of making false and inflammatory statements about immigrants, Venezuelans in particular." Also source for February 2026 court filings in which federal prosecutors said they were "not suggesting" Nino-Moncada was a gang member.
21. Two Protesters Blinded by IÇE Agents at Santa Ana Demonstration | Pasadena Star News / ktla.com / Los Angeles Times, January 2026. Source for the January 9, 2026 less-lethal munitions incident outside the federal building in Santa Ana, California, in which two protesters were blinded by projectiles fired at close range. The survivor quoted stated: "I had shards of metal, glass, and plastic behind my eye and in my skull. They said it was a miracle I survived."
22. Two Journalists Injured as IÇE Agents Fire Pepper Balls at Minneapolis Demonstration | Associated Press / Press Freedom Tracker, January 2026. Source for the January 11, 2026 incident outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis in which two journalists were struck by pepper balls fired by IÇE agents during a demonstration.
23. Federal Agent Fires Weapon During Immigration Operation in Willowbrook | New York Times, January 2026. Source for the January 21, 2026 shots fired incident in Willowbrook, an unincorporated community in Los Angeles County, in which a federal agent discharged a weapon during an alleged human smuggling operation.
24. IÇE Agent Fires at Truck During Arrest in Dover, New Jersey | NJ.com, February 2026. Source for the February 10, 2026 shots fired incident in Dover, New Jersey, in which an IÇE agent fired at a truck during the attempted arrest of Jesus Fabian Lopez-Banegas, a Honduran national.
25. IÇE Shoots Man During Traffic Stop in Patterson, California | KCRA Sacramento, April 2026. Source for the April 7, 2026 shooting of Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez during a traffic stop in Patterson, California, including his attorney's statement that he was on his way to work when stopped.
26. Gun Violence Archive: Federal Immigration Agent Incidents | Gun Violence Archive. Source for tracking and logging of individual incidents involving federal immigration agents discharging firearms, used by The Trace and other outlets to compile the running shooter database referenced throughout this report.
27. Death of Refugee Left at Donut Shop by Border Patrol Ruled Homicide | NBC New York, April 2026. Source for the Erie County Medical Examiner's homicide ruling in the death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, cause of death perforated duodenal ulcer brought on by hypothermia and dehydration, and statements from Governor Hochul and Erie County Executive Poloncarz.
28. Nearly Blind Refugee Found Dead After Border Patrol Agents Dropped Him at Buffalo Doughnut Shop | Border Report, February 2026. Source for the circumstances of Shah Alam's release from Erie County jail, the ÇBP transport and drop-off at the Tim Hortons, his family's five-day search, and the discovery of his body four miles from the drop-off location.
29. Border Patrol Dumped a Blind Man at a Buffalo Donut Shop | Investigative Post, February 2026. Source for the original reporting that Shah Alam was missing after the ÇBP drop-off, including the detail that police had closed his missing persons case upon seeing an IÇE detainer and incorrectly assumed he was in federal custody.
30. Lawyers for U.S. Citizen Shot by IÇE Agent Say Shooting Was Not Self-Defense | ABC News, November 2025. Source for Carlos Jimenez's account of the October 30, 2025 shooting in Ontario, California, including his attorney's statement that he was shot in the back shoulder as he drove away after warning agents about children at a nearby school bus stop.
31. Congresswoman Norma Torres Demands Accountability After IÇE Shoots U.S. Citizen in Ontario | Office of Congresswoman Norma Torres, November 2025. Source for congressional demand for investigation and accountability in the Jimenez shooting, including the characterization of Jimenez as a food bank worker and father of three who was shot from behind while warning agents about children at a school bus stop.
32. Summary of Incident: Two Illegal Aliens Die After Human Smuggling Vehicle Plunges Into Canal | U.S. Customs and Border Protection, official press release, March 2025. Source for the March 28, 2025 canal drowning deaths of Elena Catarina Morales-Chan and a 14-year-old boy during a ÇBP vehicle pursuit near Edcouch, Texas. ÇBP's own release confirms the Hidalgo County Forensic Center ruled both deaths homicide.
33. Fatal Encounters With CBP | Southern Border Communities Coalition. Source for tracking and documentation of all deaths resulting from encounters with U.S. Custøms and Børder Prøtection agents, including the Morales-Chan and unnamed 14-year-old drowning deaths.
34. A Look at Shootings by Federal Immigration Officers | PBS NewsHour, January 2026. Source for the December 11, 2025 fatal shooting of Isaias Sanchez Barboza, 31, by a ÇBP agent during a struggle near Rio Grande City, Texas, including the three gunshot wounds, CPR attempt, and confirmation that Texas DPS Ranger Division is investigating.
35. A Running List of ICE Deaths and Shootings During Trump's Second Term | The Week, updated February 2026. Source for the comprehensive running list of confirmed shooting deaths and injuries by IÇE and ÇBP agents since January 20, 2025, including the drowning deaths of Elena Catarina Morales-Chan and the unnamed 14-year-old, and documentation of 32 detention deaths in 2025 plus 7 additional in early 2026.
36. California Farmworker Who Fell from Roof in ICE Raid Dies from Injuries | Democracy Now!, July 2025. Source for the death of Jaime Alanís García, 57, the first known person to die in an IÇE raid under the †rump regime, who fell 30 feet from a greenhouse roof at Glass House Farms in Camarillo, California on July 10, 2025, and died two days later.
37. Jaime Alanís Garcia Death: Family Files Federal Court Claim, Demanding Accountability in Farm Worker's Death After ICE Raid | ABC7 Los Angeles, August 2025. Source for the family's federal court claim alleging illegal search and seizure and excessive force by IÇE agents, and Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum's announcement that her administration was exploring a lawsuit against IÇE.
38. Man Was Fatally Hit by Vehicle While Fleeing ICE on Virginia Highway | NBC News, October 2025. Source for the death of Josué Castro Rivera, 24, struck and killed by a pickup truck on Interstate 264 in Norfolk, Virginia on October 23, 2025 while fleeing IÇE agents, including the family's account that he was on his way to a gardening job and brother Henry Castro's statement that "he didn't deserve everything that happened to him."
39. Man Struck Dead by Vehicle on Virginia Highway After Trying to Flee Immigration Agents | PBS NewsHour, October 2025. Source for additional details on the Castro Rivera death including Virginia State Police confirmation and DH$'s statement blaming media and advocates for his death.
40. Deaths at Adult Detention Centers | American Immigration Lawyers Association, continuously updated. Source for the comprehensive chronological tracker of IÇE detention deaths, compiled from IÇE press releases and independent reporting, documenting individual deaths with names, ages, nationalities, facilities, and dates.
41. List of Deaths in ICE Detention | Wikipedia, updated April 2026. Source for the running count of 31 deaths in IÇE detention in 2025 and 16 deaths as of April 16, 2026, including documentation that IÇE has changed how it reports deaths under the †rump regime, using less detailed narrative formats and titles such as "Criminal illegal alien passes away" rather than standard death report language.