Arizona Senate Democrats Demand Accountability After ICE Shooting in Austin

PHOENIX –  Arizona Senate Democrats are once again demanding the FBI to either do their job or coordinate with state officials for their investigation after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot Wilber Rafael Garces Perez in Austin, Texas, on Sunday. Garces Perez was making DoorDash deliveries when the fatal encounter occurred.

The Austin shooting is the latest in a troubling pattern across the country. New data shows that at least 21 people have been shot by federal agents during President Trump’s second term. Eight of those were fatal, including three involving U.S. citizens.

“Twenty-one people shot. Eight lives lost. These are people and families, not statistics,” said Senate Democratic Assistant Leader Catherine Miranda. “Wilber Rafael Garces Perez was working when an ICE officer shot him. His family deserves to know exactly what happened, and he deserves medical care, due process and dignity.”

After being shot, according to his attorney, Garces Perez was transferred from a hospital to ICE detention with a bullet still lodge in his body, after sleeping on the floor while injured, he was returned to a hospital for further treatment.

“Senate Democrats have repeatedly raised the alarm about violent immigration enforcement tactics,” said Senate Democratic Leader Priya Sundareshan. “Enforcing the law does not give federal agents a blank check to endanger lives and ignore due process. Immigrants are our neighbors, colleagues and friends, and every person has rights. We will keep fighting for humane treatment and accountability. Enough is enough.”

That concern crosses party lines. The mother of Renee Good, the 37-year-old Minneapolis, Minnesota, woman fatally shot by an ICE agent in January, spoke out at a congressional hearing in Washington, D.C. this week. She admitted having voted for Trump, believing that these agents were going to protect families like hers from terrorists. She never imagined that her family would end up being victimized. Across the country, Americans are increasingly rejecting the Trump administration’s immigration tactics, with a majority saying they have gone too far.

“Americans are being told to accept one shooting after another as the cost of immigration enforcement. We refuse,” said Senator Analise Ortiz. “An officer’s decision to use deadly force must face independent scrutiny. Federal authorities need to preserve and release the evidence and cooperate fully with local investigators.”

Arizona Senate Democrats will continue fighting for human rights, humane treatment of immigrants and respect for the law. Immigrant communities are woven into the fabric of Arizona. They are our neighbors, colleagues and friends, and we will continue to stand with them.