Just over one year into Donald Trump’s second term, his anti-immigrant mass deportation agenda – spearheaded by Stephen Miller – has descended into lawlessness and brutality. Following the deadliest year of immigration enforcement in decades, in just the first three weeks of 2026 federal immigration agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens: Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. What began as violent operations targeting immigrant communities has expanded into a threat to all Americans.
Here is documentation of the increased brutality from DHS that now defines Trump’s anti-immigrant administration:
Gun Violence by DHS: Federal Agents Have Shot At Least 20 People Since Last Year
- The Trace’s tracking has identified at least 20 incidents where immigration agents opened fire on civilians, resulting in at least 5 deaths and 9 people injured since deployments began in June 2025.
- At least 4 people have been shot while observing or documenting immigration raids, including bystanders and witnesses attempting to record enforcement actions.
- At least 5 people have been shot while driving away from traffic stops or attempting to evade enforcement.
- Among the at least 20 documented incidents here are the few examples cases:
- September 12, 2025: Silverio Villegas Gonzalez was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents in Franklin Park, IL.
- October 4, 2025: Marimar Martinez, a U.S. citizen, was shot and injured by Border Patrol agents in Chicago, IL.
- October 21, 2025: Carlitos Ricardo Parias was shot and injured by an ICE agent in Los Angeles, CA.
- October 29, 2025: Jose Garcia-Sorto was shot and injured during an immigration enforcement action by ICE agents in Phoenix, AZ.
- October 30, 2025: Carlos Jimenez, a U.S. citizen, was shot and injured by ICE agents in Ontario, CA.
- December 11, 2025: Isaias Sanchez Barboza was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents in Starr County, TX.
- December 24, 2025: Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins was shot and injured by ICE agents in Glen Burnie, MD.
- December 31, 2025: Keith Porter Jr. was shot and killed by an off-duty ICE agent outside his apartment complex in Los Angeles, CA.
- January 7, 2026: Renee Nicole Good, a U.S. citizen, was shot and killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis, MN.
- January 8, 2026: Luis David Nino Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras were both shot and injured by Border Patrol agents in Portland, OR.
- January 14, 2026: Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis was shot and injured by ICE agents in Minneapolis, MN.
- January 24, 2026: Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen, was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, MN.
- January 27, 2026: Patrick Gary Schlegel, a U.S. citizen, was shot and injured by Border Patrol agents in Arivaca, AZ.
Violence Against Children: ICE Agents Using Minors as “Bait”
- The number of children in ICE detention has skyrocketed under Trump’s second administration. According to The Marshall Project’s analysis of data from the Deportation Data Project, ICE now holds around 170 children on an average day—more than six times the approximately 25 children detained daily during the final 16 months of the Biden administration.
- ICE agents detained a 5-year-old boy and his father as they returned from preschool, then directed the child to knock on the family’s door to check for other family members inside, using the kindergartener as “bait” to lure relatives out of their home.
- Three children were hospitalized after ICE allegedly detonated flash-bang grenades and tear gas near their family van. Parents reported that their infant couldn’t breathe, and bystanders had to help extract the children from the gas-filled vehicle as they struggled for air.
- ICE detained a 2-year-old girl and her father during a traffic stop as they were returning from the grocery store, separating the toddler from her mother for hours.
- A 5-year-old U.S. citizen was deported to Honduras with her mother whose visa application was still pending.
- ICE agents are patrolling outside of schools and daycare, making it unsafe for children to go to school, even U.S. citizen children and their parents.
Brutality In Custody: 31 Deaths in 2025 and Ongoing Abuse
- 2025 was the deadliest year for ICE detention in decades, with at least 31 deaths in immigration custody facilities across the country.
- In just the first week of 2026, ICE reported at least 3 deaths in custody.
- One of the reported deaths was Geraldo Lunas Campos, whose death was ruled a homicide by medical examiners due to asphyxia from neck and torso compression. The autopsy revealed signs of a violent struggle, indicating he was forcibly restrained in a manner that caused his death.
- More than 1,000 alleged rights abuses in immigration detention have been documented, including reports of medical neglect, physical abuse, sexual assault, and denial of basic necessities.
- A ProPublica investigation uncovered more than 40 incidents where ICE agents used banned chokeholds and neck restraints despite federal policy explicitly prohibiting such techniques. The investigation found that agents routinely applied these dangerous restraints during routine arrests, putting detainees at risk of serious injury or death.
Flouting the Law: Warrantless Raids, Violence Against Protesters, and Constitutional Violations
- An internal ICE memo shows authorization for ICE officers to use force to enter a residence based solely on administrative warrants. The memo marks a sharp reversal of longstanding guidance that respected Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches and seizures.
- In one incident, a U.S. citizen says ICE forced open the door to his Minnesota home and removed him in his underwear after conducting a warrantless search.
- In January, Illinois filed a 100+ page lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of unleashing “an organized bombardment” with “uniformed, military-trained personnel, carrying semi-automatic firearms and military-grade weaponry” who “rampaged for months through Chicago and the surrounding areas, lawlessly stopping, interrogating and arresting residents.”
- A federal judge in Minnesota condemned ICE for violating nearly 100 court orders, stating that “ICE is not a law unto itself,” highlighting the agency’s systematic disregard for judicial oversight and constitutional protections.
In Their Own Words: Administration Official Authorize Cruelty
- President Trump: “Let the patriots at ICE do their job!”
- President Trump also called Renee Good, the poet and U.S. citizen shot by federal agents, a “professional agitator”, “very radical”, and “very violent” with no evidence to support his claims.
- Vice President JD Vance: “I think we’re going to see those deportation numbers ramp up as we get more and more people online working for ICE, going door to door.”
- Deputy Chief-of-Staff Stephen Miller called Alex Pretti, the VA nurse and U.S citizen who was shot by federal agents, a “would-be assassin” who “tried to murder federal law enforcement” without any evidence.
- Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called the killing of Renee Good “justified”, claiming the resistance was “domestic terrorism.”
