A federal immigration officer shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, a day after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis.
Local police said they responded to the area where the shooting took place, then minutes later were summoned to a location a couple miles away where a man and woman were found with gunshot wounds. The two were taken to a hospital.
“We are still in the early stages of this incident,” said Portland Police Bureau Chief Bob Day. “We understand the heightened emotion and tension many are feeling in the wake of the shooting in Minneapolis, but I am asking the community to remain calm as we work to learn more.”
Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Border Patrol agents were attempting to stop a vehicle and arrest occupants they believed to be connected to the Tren de Aragua gang, a designated terrorist organization.
When agents identified themselves, the driver tried to use his vehicle to run them over, and one of the agents opened fire. Ms. McLaughlin described the shooting as “defensive.”
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek also continued to lay blame on the feds despite the explanation, calling the shooting “another terrible, unnecessary violent event instigated by the reckless agenda of the Trump administration.”
“While details remain limited, one thing is clear: when a president endorses tearing families apart, and attempts to govern through fear and hate rather than shared values, he fosters an environment of lawlessness and recklessness,” the Democratic governor said.
Rep. Maxine Dexter, a Democrat who represents the area in Congress, said both people were still alive.
She excoriated U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the shooting and demanded an investigation be led by local authorities.
“ICE has done nothing but inject terror, chaos, and cruelty into our communities,” she said. “ICE must immediately end all active operations in Portland.”
Similar calls have been made in Minneapolis, where an ICE officer shot and killed a woman on Wednesday.
Video of that confrontation shows the woman’s SUV partially blocking a road as officers were trying to drive through. Several officers approached the woman and demanded she exit the vehicle but she reversed then lurched forward, striking another ICE officer who drew his weapon and fired at her through the SUV windshield.
