Senator Angus King of Maine is calling for state and local officials to be included in the investigation into the fatal shooting of a 26-year-old Colombian national by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Biddeford on Monday. Joan Sebastian Guerrero was killed after ICE agents attempted to pull him over while he was driving, according to ICE officials who said Guerrero tried to flee and used his vehicle as a weapon, prompting an agent to fire in self-defense. King told PBS NewsHour that federal agencies lack the credibility to conduct a transparent investigation on their own.
ICE officials stated Guerrero was not the target of the original investigation. The shooting follows two other recent incidents involving ICE vehicle encounters: another fatal shooting in Houston and a separate incident in Florida where a man fleeing immigration agents was struck and killed by a tractor trailer while crossing a busy street. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced Tuesday that ICE would temporarily pause vehicle stop operations nationwide, though the agency has faced criticism over officer training and equipment.
What the Right Is Saying
White House Border Czar Tom Homan defended the pause in vehicle stops as a temporary measure to ensure officer safety and review training protocols. He cited data on vehicle attacks against law enforcement, stating such incidents are up 3,400 percent. 'I think what they're doing is taking a pause to make sure that, number one, the ICE officers have everything they need to stay safe,' Homan said in the same PBS NewsHour segment.
Homan expressed confidence that vehicle stop operations would resume after the review concludes. 'I'm confident they're going to get back to their policy of vehicle stops,' he said. 'They're doing what they believe is a necessary short-term pause just to look at it and make sure everything's good.' The administration has emphasized that ICE targets individuals with criminal records and poses significant public safety risks, though King's office disputed this characterization based on Maine arrest data.
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive lawmakers and immigrant rights advocates have aligned with King's concerns about federal oversight of ICE operations. King argued that investigations into incidents like the Biddeford shooting should involve state and local officials rather than being conducted solely by ICE, DHS, and the FBI. He specifically criticized the absence of body cameras on officers involved in both the Maine and Houston shootings despite congressional funding for such equipment.
The senator also questioned the broader premise of federal immigration enforcement operations in communities like Biddeford. King cited data from a winter surge operation in Maine where ICE arrested over 200 people, noting that only 19 had criminal records. He quoted local officials including the mayor of Biddeford and the speaker of the Maine House as saying there was no crime problem involving immigrants in their community. 'They shouldn't have been there,' King said. 'The whole premise of this operation is phony.'
What the Numbers Show
According to figures cited by Senator King during the interview, a recent ICE surge operation in Maine resulted in over 200 arrests. Of those arrested, only 19 had criminal records, meaning approximately 90 percent did not have prior convictions. The victim in Monday's shooting was identified as a 26-year-old Colombian national with a 3-year-old daughter.
Federal funding for body camera implementation at ICE has been allocated through congressional appropriations, though the agency has faced delays in deploying cameras to frontline agents. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem announced in February that body cameras would be deployed rapidly across the country to every agent. Both officers involved in the Maine shooting and those involved in the Houston incident were without body cameras at the time of their respective incidents.
ICE officials told PBS NewsHour that operational funding extends through the end of President Trump's current term. The agency has faced criticism over officer training, with King noting that the agent who fired the fatal shot in Biddeford had been with the agency for less than a year.
The Bottom Line
The temporary suspension of ICE vehicle stop operations marks a significant shift in federal immigration enforcement policy as the administration reviews training and safety protocols. Senator King's call for state and local involvement in investigations reflects broader tensions between federal immigration authorities and communities that have pushed back against aggressive enforcement tactics.
PBS NewsHour requested interviews with DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and the head of ICE; both requests were declined. King has spoken with DHS officials about the Maine incident but said key facts remain unclear due to lack of video evidence from body cameras or dashcams. The investigation into Guerrero's death is ongoing, though no timeline for its completion has been announced.