Border Affairs Supervisor Tom Homan stated on Sunday that if allegations of domestic violence against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) law enforcement officers are true, then these individuals should not have passed the background check. ICE is currently investigating recruitment training and other related content to ensure law enforcement safety.
Homan’s remarks were made during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” on July 26. Host Dana Bash brought up a case involving an ICE agent in Maine who was accused of domestic violence by his ex-wife and had been ordered by the court to surrender his firearm. Homan responded, “If those allegations are true, I don’t think he should have passed the background check.”
Homan mentioned that the internal affairs department has initiated an investigation into the matter, which covers not only recruitment but also training procedures. He questioned, “How did the background check process fail? Was the information not available at the time, or did they simply not know?”
With about 30,000 employees, Homan pointed out that ICE personnel undergo background checks, and individual errors in recruitment are indeed rare occurrences.
Regarding training investigations, Bash inquired whether this implies inadequate training within ICE in recent months, to which Homan firmly opposed. He emphasized that reviewing current training practices is a routine procedure for law enforcement agencies, constantly being adjusted, and it would be unfair to say that the training is insufficient.
In relation to vehicle stops, Homan mentioned a new requirement of having a law enforcement camera on-site to record enforcement actions, while also looking into the processes to ensure the safety of ICE agents during stops. He expressed his support for the use of law enforcement cameras, hoping that through videos, the public can witness the circumstances in which law enforcement officers operated and the reasons for their actions.
Homan stated, “I see a lot of rhetoric every day, especially in sanctuary cities and protests, where congressmen claim that ICE is not a legitimate law enforcement agency.” He believes that such statements may discourage some individuals from cooperating with ICE. “Regardless of your opinion on ICE or immigration laws, you should always cooperate with law enforcement,” he added.
Homan has expressed similar views in various interviews before. For instance, during an interview with CNN on March 29 this year, when questioned about ICE wearing masks during enforcement actions, Homan explained that ICE does not wear masks at airports, but on the streets because the purpose of street enforcement is to arrest criminals, potentially facing provocateurs who threaten the safety of ICE agents.
“ICE enforcement is carrying out laws passed by Congress. The laws haven’t changed; it’s the Biden administration failing to enforce the laws over the past four years. Now that ICE is enforcing them, they (Democrats) don’t like it,” Homan concluded.