US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have been instructed to stop arresting immigrants who do not have criminal convictions or pending criminal charges, according to agency sources.
Under the reported directive, federal immigration agents may arrest immigrants with criminal convictions or pending criminal charges, while those with final deportation orders but no criminal convictions or charges would not be arrested, The Daily Wire reported.
The reported change would also end so-called "collateral arrests," under which officers may detain others without legal status encountered while pursuing a criminal target, according to sources.
The reported directive comes amid increased scrutiny of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement policies and ICE operations.
Several ICE officers expressed frustration about the reported change, with one source suggesting it could be linked to the upcoming midterm elections.
"We believe it has something to do with the midterms coming up," said one source. "They're trying to calm things down before the elections."
"We'll see the arrest numbers go down," said another source.
The reported change comes about a week after an ICE officer shot and wounded a Venezuelan man in the state of Texas during an attempted traffic stop.
The officer, who was reportedly hired by ICE last year after previously working for another federal law enforcement agency, had been issued a body camera but was not wearing it during the incident, according to US media reports citing federal officials.
ICE subsequently reminded officers that they "must activate" their body cameras during enforcement activities, according to an internal notice cited by The Washington Post.
A federal judge ordered Wilber Rafael Garces Perez from Venezuela to appear at a Sept. 30 hearing, temporarily preventing his deportation.
An ICE source questioned whether Trump was aware of the reported directive.
"I hope Trump finds out about this sh*t and puts an end to it," said the source.
