How to Actually Reform ICE

""Abolish ICE" is the cause of the moment, but that end point seems unlikely; many of the functions that Immigration and Customs Enforcement undertakes must be done, and are part of any normal presidential administration. The best-case scenario is not abolition but reform-true, fundamental reform-to turn ICE into a law-enforcement agency that respects the Constitution and laws of America. That sort of extensive reform is not easy,"

"Meaningful reform would address four distinct areas: personnel, operations, accountability, and organizational culture. It would do so across the agency that actually is ICE and the others that are colloquially referred to as ICE today because of their ongoing participation in the enforcement surge, such as Homeland Security Investigations and the Border Patrol. Fundamentally, the reforms would seek to restore accountability, transparency, and trust, enabling "New ICE" to transform itself into an agency of which the American people can be proud."

"All of this starts with personnel-who is recruited and how they are trained. To satisfy President Trump's demand for overly aggressive enforcement, ICE has lowered its standards for recruitment and shortened the training period, bringing in a flood of new recruits. The results are inevitable: lower-quality enforcement agents and more mistakes. Adam Serwer: The real reason ICE agents wear masks Department of Homeland Security agents already have a notably poor level of compliance with legal requirements."

Abolition of ICE is presented as unlikely because many ICE functions are necessary for normal presidential administrations. The preferable outcome is fundamental reform to make ICE a constitutional, law-enforcement agency rather than elimination. Meaningful reform must begin now and focus on four areas: personnel, operations, accountability, and organizational culture, and apply across ICE and related components like Homeland Security Investigations and the Border Patrol. Reforms should restore accountability, transparency, and trust to create a trustworthy agency. Recruitment and training standards must be raised to prevent lower-quality agents, mistakes, and worsening legal noncompliance among enforcement personnel.

Read at The Atlantic