ICE to deploy body cameras on special agents

ICE said Tuesday it will begin to deploy body cameras on special agents, to be followed eventually by deportation officers, in a move the Biden administration characterized as bringing “transparency” to the agency.

Under a pilot program, agents who operate as part of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s SWAT team in New York City, Houston and Newark, New Jersey, will be outfitted with the cameras.

“With its body-worn camera pilot, ICE is making an important statement that transparency and accountability are essential components of our ability to fulfill our law enforcement mission and keep communities safe,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

The pilot program was mandated by Congress in the department’s 2021 spending bill.

Cameras will be worn on agents’ vests or helmets and agents have been trained on privacy and civil liberties issues, as well as the technology, the department said.

The footage will be used to assess agents’ behavior, including in use-of-force incidents.

Special agents are part of Homeland Security Investigations, the criminal arm of ICE. HSI probes everything from gangs to child pornography rings to cyber crime, as well as cases against international and border smuggling rings.

They are not generally engaged in basic immigration enforcement.

That’s the role of deportation officers at ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division.

Homeland Security said it is negotiating with the union for the officers on how to deploy cameras to that section of the workforce.

Customs and Border Protection, the other Homeland Security agency involved in active law enforcement patrol of immigration offenses, announced its camera pilot project in August. CBP said it expected 6,000 cameras to be deployed by the end of this month.

ICE, in an evaluation of cameras released earlier this year, said they can help bring clarity to investigators trying to piece together what happened during encounters, can deter frivolous complaints against government officers and can create a “civilizing effect” on officers’ interactions with the public.

That ICE report said recordings must begin before encounters, or at least as soon as practicable after encounters begin, and must remain on for the entirety of the encounter.

The cameras are not to be used for facial recognition purposes, according to ICE’s policy.