ICE Halts Most Vehicle Stops After Maine, Texas Shootings, Sources Say

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have been instructed to immediately suspend most vehicle stops during enforcement operations nationwide, except in cases involving serious criminal targets, following fatal shootings in Texas and Maine over the last week, multiple law enforcement sources told CBS News Tuesday morning.

The directive applies to ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, the division responsible for civil immigration arrests and removals, but not Homeland Security Investigations, which primarily handles criminal investigations, according to sources. It is a temporary pause while Enforcement and Removal Operations officers receive additional training on vehicle-stop tactics, the sources said.

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Homan said ICE leadership and DHS “want to look at these last couple of incidents. And look, is there something that could have been done better?” He added, “I’m confident that ICE is well trained in vehicle stops and you’re going to see us keep moving forward.”

President Trump called on ICE to continue traffic stops in a Truth Social post Wednesday morning, writing,
“we CANNOT give up one of I.C.E.’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP! Once we do, we are playing right into the criminal’s hands.” But he told ICE to “be judicious, fair and smart.”

In the meantime, ERO officers can still participate in operations involving vehicle stops when working with partner law enforcement agencies targeting criminal suspects who are the subject of judicial warrants, sources said.

The shift could have significant operational impacts. Vehicle stops have been a common tactic in ICE enforcement operations under the Trump administration, allowing officers to identify, follow and arrest targeted individuals away from homes or workplaces.

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