Two things strike me about the men who murdered Alex Pretti. First, with eight and twelve years working for Border Patrol, they are not recent hires. The man who murdered Rene Good had been employed for a similar time and had background in Border Patrol. That suggests the issues with unreasonable force have been embedded in the Border Patrol for a long time. Second, the two men are Hispanic. Most of us would have assumed that, as with the killer of Rene Good, they would be white males. It has been clear to me, for some time now, that even with the masks, there is a racial mix among ICE and Border Patrol. What seems to unite all of them is the camaraderie from a sadistic joy in inflicting pain.
I would like to see the agent who clapped after Pretti's murder identified.
I support Pro Publica with a donation every year and encourage all who are able to do so.
50% of Border Patrol are Hispanic. 30% of ICE are Hispanic. 20% of Americans are Hispanic.
According to a reputable law enforcement source, Border Patrol are always armed and there seems to be a mentality or culture of 'danger.' They're out there with not many witnesses around.
Residents of border towns have complained of abuse by BP (read that in NYT).
Once this vicious, violent regime is removed, IMO we should search the southern border for human remains. Just so we know what has been done in our name, when we didn't bother to look.
ICE does not need to be armed. An “armed ICE” has proven to be too lethal to innocent citizens, dangerous to the careless gun-handling agents themselves, and injurious to fellow agents who are accidentally shot by another careless ICE agent. https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/reform-homeland-security?r=3m1bs
Thanks Steven and Mark: Jesus OCHOA 43 years male and Raimundo GUTIERREZ 35 years male. I wonder if these gestapo agents have any fire arms training. Will they be tried in a court. I imagine they are masked up is they are embarrassed with what they are doing. If this debauchery does not cease someone in the protest will go over the edge and show up armed with an intent to use it; Just keep peacefully protesting , Stay loud and proud, Keep your distance from the gestapo agents.
Yes, fire arms training. They all know how to shoot. Border Patrol has acted like this without the masks since its inception — until more recently was restricted to the Border Zone where only advocacy groups care and encounters are videoed less often.
Most of the officers in MN are believed to be Border Patrol. Stephen Miller has been busy making ICE more like Border Patrol. A lot of what we see reported now are practices going back a long time; children used as bait; family separation as a form of coercion and abuse & denial of rights. Violence and racism without accountability. https://theintercept.com/2019/01/12/border-patrol-history/
ICE and BP jobs & training are not about handling situations involving group of bystanders, protesters or crowds. ICE has jurisdiction across the interior of the US. The quota thing is new as are the masks, warrantless arrest expansion and an administration that publicly approved of violence. The ICE website on the Frequently Asked Questions page:
Q: Why does ICE arrest people, and do they need a warrant?
A: … ICE does not [“not” is in bold] need judicial warrants to make arrests. Like all other law enforcement officers, ICE officers and agents can initiate consensual encounters and speak with people, briefly detain aliens when they have reasonable suspicion that the aliens are illegally present in the United States, and arrest people they believe are illegal aliens. ICE officers and agents can also detain and search people crossing the border. …
Law enforcement officers carry firearms. None of them need masks, military weapons and armored paramilitary vehicles. Wearing masks, except for Covid (when many resisted) is a new addition to their gear.
Immigration enforcement agents are rarely shot. Vehicular accidents are a leading cause of death. It’s noteworthy that a law enforcement advocacy group says law enforcement fatalities are at “near historic lows.” (Their statistics include federal officers.) Maybe expanding warrantless arrests & spreading Border Patrol’s dangerous aggressive lawlessness to ICE in urban areas is the problem. https://nleomf.org/2025-year-end-officer-fatalities-report/
“The chance of an ICE or Border Patrol agent being murdered in the line of duty is about one in 94,549 per year, about 5.5 times less likely than a civilian being murdered. We should be much less concerned about their safety. Less than 10 percent of all Border Patrol agents and ICE officers who died in the line of duty were murdered.” https://www.cato.org/blog/2025-was-2nd-safest-year-border-patrol-ice-agents
Two things strike me about the men who murdered Alex Pretti. First, with eight and twelve years working for Border Patrol, they are not recent hires. The man who murdered Rene Good had been employed for a similar time and had background in Border Patrol. That suggests the issues with unreasonable force have been embedded in the Border Patrol for a long time. Second, the two men are Hispanic. Most of us would have assumed that, as with the killer of Rene Good, they would be white males. It has been clear to me, for some time now, that even with the masks, there is a racial mix among ICE and Border Patrol. What seems to unite all of them is the camaraderie from a sadistic joy in inflicting pain.
I would like to see the agent who clapped after Pretti's murder identified.
I support Pro Publica with a donation every year and encourage all who are able to do so.
50% of Border Patrol are Hispanic. 30% of ICE are Hispanic. 20% of Americans are Hispanic.
According to a reputable law enforcement source, Border Patrol are always armed and there seems to be a mentality or culture of 'danger.' They're out there with not many witnesses around.
Residents of border towns have complained of abuse by BP (read that in NYT).
Once this vicious, violent regime is removed, IMO we should search the southern border for human remains. Just so we know what has been done in our name, when we didn't bother to look.
ProPublica does a lot of good reporting. It often partners with others sources. Kudos to them and you guys for highlighting their report.
It's good to see they weren't last-minute, untrained hires. That is an even more stunning indictment of what is running our country!!!
ICE does not need to be armed. An “armed ICE” has proven to be too lethal to innocent citizens, dangerous to the careless gun-handling agents themselves, and injurious to fellow agents who are accidentally shot by another careless ICE agent. https://hotbuttons.substack.com/p/reform-homeland-security?r=3m1bs
Thanks Steven and Mark: Jesus OCHOA 43 years male and Raimundo GUTIERREZ 35 years male. I wonder if these gestapo agents have any fire arms training. Will they be tried in a court. I imagine they are masked up is they are embarrassed with what they are doing. If this debauchery does not cease someone in the protest will go over the edge and show up armed with an intent to use it; Just keep peacefully protesting , Stay loud and proud, Keep your distance from the gestapo agents.
Yes, fire arms training. They all know how to shoot. Border Patrol has acted like this without the masks since its inception — until more recently was restricted to the Border Zone where only advocacy groups care and encounters are videoed less often.
Most of the officers in MN are believed to be Border Patrol. Stephen Miller has been busy making ICE more like Border Patrol. A lot of what we see reported now are practices going back a long time; children used as bait; family separation as a form of coercion and abuse & denial of rights. Violence and racism without accountability. https://theintercept.com/2019/01/12/border-patrol-history/
ICE and BP jobs & training are not about handling situations involving group of bystanders, protesters or crowds. ICE has jurisdiction across the interior of the US. The quota thing is new as are the masks, warrantless arrest expansion and an administration that publicly approved of violence. The ICE website on the Frequently Asked Questions page:
Q: Why does ICE arrest people, and do they need a warrant?
A: … ICE does not [“not” is in bold] need judicial warrants to make arrests. Like all other law enforcement officers, ICE officers and agents can initiate consensual encounters and speak with people, briefly detain aliens when they have reasonable suspicion that the aliens are illegally present in the United States, and arrest people they believe are illegal aliens. ICE officers and agents can also detain and search people crossing the border. …
https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/border-zone?ref=liberalcurrents.com
Thanks Ann.
Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Now for the prosecution. Due process.
More ICE agents are accidentally shot by other ICE agents than shot by themselves. My guess. I will look this up.
Law enforcement officers carry firearms. None of them need masks, military weapons and armored paramilitary vehicles. Wearing masks, except for Covid (when many resisted) is a new addition to their gear.
Immigration enforcement agents are rarely shot. Vehicular accidents are a leading cause of death. It’s noteworthy that a law enforcement advocacy group says law enforcement fatalities are at “near historic lows.” (Their statistics include federal officers.) Maybe expanding warrantless arrests & spreading Border Patrol’s dangerous aggressive lawlessness to ICE in urban areas is the problem. https://nleomf.org/2025-year-end-officer-fatalities-report/
“The chance of an ICE or Border Patrol agent being murdered in the line of duty is about one in 94,549 per year, about 5.5 times less likely than a civilian being murdered. We should be much less concerned about their safety. Less than 10 percent of all Border Patrol agents and ICE officers who died in the line of duty were murdered.” https://www.cato.org/blog/2025-was-2nd-safest-year-border-patrol-ice-agents
Fear and intimidation of the public equals domestic terrorism.
Bandits have the same fear of being unmasked
Unidentified is unaccountable.