How to Make Sense of the Federal Forces on the Streets
F.B.I., D.E.A., Secret Service
F.B.I., D.E.A., Secret Service
The aggressive immigration crackdown unfolding in Minneapolis follows months of clashes between federal officers and residents of major cities over the Trump administration’s deportation campaign and anticrime efforts.
The Trump administration has deployed a variety of federal forces to city streets. Often, it can be difficult for the public to tell these officers apart, or to understand what powers each agency has and whether established norms are being broken. Here is a guide to how these forces have operated in other cities, including alongside local law enforcement.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the primary immigration law enforcement agency in the country, and its officers wear a variety of uniforms and identifiers.
July — Stamford, Conn.
Agents’ vests may indicate which part of ICE the agents work for.
Agents’ vests may indicate which part of ICE the agents work for.
August — Washington, D.C.
August — Washington, D.C.
Officers sometimes wear vests simply labeled “Police.”
Officers sometimes wear vests simply labeled “Police.”
Photos by John Moore/Getty Images (top); Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images (middle); Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images (bottom)
ICE is made up of two main branches. The officers of Enforcement and Removal Operations typically handle arrests and deportations. In the past, Homeland Security Investigations focused on transnational crimes, but Mr. Trump has called on its officers to make other arrests in the field.
Confusion over immigration officers’ relationship to other law enforcement is not new. In 2020, community organizations in California sued ICE, claiming officers misrepresented themselves as the police during immigration operations. The lawsuit was settled in August and mandated that officers clearly identify themselves as ICE on their clothing.
Elsewhere, ICE officers may operate in plain clothes with no or minimal identification but are supposed to identify themselves during arrests.
One case involving a Turkish doctoral student sparked outrage when footage surfaced of plainclothes agents confronting her on the street outside Boston in March.
March — Somerville, Mass.
ICE officers in plain clothes show their badges as they approach a student to detain her.
ICE officers in plain clothes show their badges as they approach a student to detain her.
Footage via WCVB Channel 5 Boston
Still other ICE officers may appear in full military-style fatigues, like the agency’s Special Response Teams, who are trained for high-risk operations. Since the anti-ICE summer protests in Los Angeles, they have also been guarding ICE facilities and making some street arrests.
June — Los Angeles
Officers for ICE’s Special Response Team often carry crowd control equipment.
Officers for ICE’s Special Response Team often carry crowd control equipment.
Launcher for less-lethal ammunition
Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Customs and Border Protection is charged with law enforcement at the border, but Mr. Trump has deployed its agents nationwide to arrest immigrants. Within 100 miles of the border, they have greater authority than local law enforcement to conduct certain searches.
Like ICE officers, their uniforms vary.
July — New York
Over plain clothes, Border Patrol agents often wear vests with their agency’s name.
Over plain clothes, Border Patrol agents often wear vests with their agency’s name.
October — Portland, Ore.
Border Patrol tactical teams wear vest patches that can read “Border Patrol” or just “Police.”
Border Patrol tactical teams wear vest patches that can read “Border Patrol” or just “Police.”
Photos by Todd Heisler/The New York Times (top); Spencer Platt/Getty Images (bottom)
After protests mounted over his immigration crackdown, Mr. Trump sent National Guard troops to Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland, Ore., citing a need to protect immigration agents and federal property. He also has called upon the National Guard to work alongside the local police in Memphis and Washington, D.C.
June — Los Angeles
National Guard troops can carry shields, batons and rifles.
National Guard troops can carry shields, batons and rifles.
Photo by Robyn Beck/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Local officials in most of these cities, which are led by Democrats, have strongly objected to the deployments, saying Mr. Trump is misusing the Guard, a part-time military force that most often is called upon during natural disasters, wars or civil unrest.
What they are doing
Where the president’s deportation and crime-prevention campaigns intersect, the lines have blurred, and all types of law enforcement share overlapping roles.
While immigration enforcement is the purview of ICE and Border Patrol, other agencies within the Department of Homeland Security and in the Justice Department have increasingly taken on this work.
The Drug Enforcement Administration joins ICE officers at a raid on a home.
The Drug Enforcement Administration joins ICE officers at a raid on a home.
September — Chelsea, Mass.
Federal agents load a man into an unmarked car during an immigration raid.
Federal agents load a man into an unmarked car during an immigration raid.
Photos by D.E.A, via Reuters (top); Brian Snyder/Reuters (bottom)
ICE often conducts raids on residences, and the agency has revived workplace raids, a practice largely suspended under the previous administration. Officers more often now stop people on the street, sometimes detaining U.S. citizens. ICE and Border Patrol agents also make arrests at courthouse immigration hearings, a practice legal groups say violates due process protections.
In many places, the local police work directly with Homeland Security to arrest immigrants, or to detain them until immigration officers arrive.
In Washington, at least eight federal agencies were part of Mr. Trump’s efforts to take control of law enforcement. The local police helped immigration officers identify targets during stops for minor infractions, and immigration officers helped with arrests for nonimmigration crimes.
August — Washington, D.C.
Metropolitan Police work alongside Homeland Security officers at a checkpoint.
Metropolitan Police work alongside Homeland Security officers at a checkpoint.
August — Washington, D.C.
A Homeland Security Investigations agent at the scene of a Metropolitan Police arrest.
Homeland Security Investigations and Secret Service agents at the scene of a Metropolitan Police arrest.
Photos by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images (top); Kenny Holston/The New York Times (bottom)
In cities where the administration says its immigration enforcement is at risk, the National Guard and federal forces have worked side by side to secure federal buildings and to confront protesters.
September — Broadview, Ill.
ICE and Border Patrol face protesters at the Broadview immigration facility outside Chicago.
ICE and Border Patrol face protesters at the Broadview immigration facility outside Chicago.
June — Los Angeles
ICE officers and National Guard members secure a federal building complex.
ICE officers and National Guard members secure a federal building complex.
Federal Protective Services is also at the scene.
National Guard members walk the beat with Memphis Police.
National Guard members walk the beat with Memphis Police.
Photos by Anthony Vazquez/Chicago Sun-Times, via Associated Press (top); David Ryder/Reuters (middle); George Walker IV/Associated Press (bottom)
The working relationship between the various law enforcement agencies is not always clear. The Chicago police were exposed to tear gas when federal agents tried to disperse a crowd in the city without warning this month. Homeland Security officials said the Chicago police did not respond to the scene of a car crash and shooting that involved federal agents, an account local officials dispute.
The deployment of militarized forces to major cities has drawn intense criticism from some residents, local leaders, and advocates for immigrants and civil liberties, who say the federal presence does more to stoke fear than to promote public safety.
Of particular concern is that many federal forces are increasingly hiding their faces with masks and other coverings during street operations.
June — New York
ICE agents wear masks inside an immigration courthouse.
ICE agents wear masks inside an immigration courthouse.
August — Los Angeles
Border Patrol agents wear masks to arrest a street food vendor outside a Home Depot.
Border Patrol agents wear masks to arrest a street food vendor outside a Home Depot.
Photos by Olga Fedorova/Associated Press (top); Gregory Bull/Associated Press (bottom)
“To witness a loved one, a neighbor, or community member being arrested before your very eyes by masked, unidentified men, is terrifying,” said Priscilla Olivarez, a senior policy attorney with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.
There is no federal law requiring immigration agents to reveal their faces or personal identities. A Homeland Security spokeswoman said agents wear masks to protect themselves from personal attacks, and that they clearly identify themselves as law enforcement even when masked.
Local law enforcement agencies often have stricter rules about identification. In Chicago, police officers may not wear face coverings, and in New York City, Seattle, Miami, and Washington, D.C., officers must prominently display their names and badge numbers on their uniforms.
In September, California passed legislation banning federal immigration officers from concealing their faces. Homeland Security called the law unconstitutional and said officers would not abide by it.
Share your videos of ICE interactions: The New York Times is looking for examples of interactions between federal immigration agents and residents across the country.
Because of an editing error, an earlier version of this article misidentified the location of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. The center is headquartered in San Francisco, not San Antonio. (One of its attorneys, Priscilla Olivarez, is based in San Antonio.)
An earlier version of a caption in this article misstated the name of the federal agency that enforces drug laws. It is the Drug Enforcement Administration, not the Drug Enforcement Agency.