Abolish ICE: The Agency Is Hiring the Criminals It Claims to Fight

Abolish ICE. Not reform it around the edges — abolish it, and do not rebuild it until Congress has legislated real vetting, real accountability, and a system that enforces civil immigration laws civilly. The Ohio Immigrant Alliance's report "They Walk Among Us" documents 59 criminal ICE and Border Patrol agents: 85% charged with sex offenses, nearly two-thirds targeting children. ICE agent Brashad Johnson, tasked with running background checks, was convicted of soliciting prostitution involving a minor. Frank Figueroa, assigned to arrest sexual predators, was found guilty of indecent exposure to a child. This agency is not deporting violent criminals — it is hiring them. The problem is accelerating. Cases from 2025 and 2026 alone account for 42% of the documented list, compared to just 6 cases in the previous peak year of 2020. DHS has responded by loosening vetting standards, cutting 240 hours from agent training, and skipping background checks — including for recruits with pending domestic violence charges. Meanwhile, civilians like Johan Sebastian are being killed on American streets by agents with documented histories of violence, and no one is being held accountable. Freeze the ICE and Border Patrol budgets now. Rescreen the entire workforce for domestic violence, sexual violence, and extremist ideology. Strip agents of guns and end street arrests for civil law violations. Immigration enforcement belongs in conference rooms and courtrooms — not on our streets with deadly force.