Maine legislators ask DHS chief to comply with state investigation into ICE killing

Dozens of Democratic legislators sent a letter to the head of U.S. Department of Homeland Security Wednesday reiterating the call for transparency and accountability regarding the July 13 killing of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero.

The 25-year-old father and Colombian national was shot in his car by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer after leaving his home in Biddeford. Officials have said he was not the intended target of their operation that morning.

“As our communities mourn Mr. Guerrero, we call on you to ensure that DHS continues to cooperate fully with the investigation by Maine’s Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Public Safety, to ensure a transparent and thorough accounting of the failures that led to his death,” legislators wrote in the letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin. 

“There is no doubt that comprehensive reform of ICE is critical to restoring public trust in the work of your department,” it continues.

The letter, signed by roughly 80 lawmakers including Maine House of Representatives Speaker Ryan Fecteau of Biddeford and Senate President Mattie Daughtry of Brunswick, follows a similar appeal for accountability and reforms made by the state’s top leaders. 

Biddeford leaders call for justice after ICE shooting. Residents are demanding action.

One day after the shooting, Maine’s bipartisan members of Congress sent a letter to the DHS Inspector General calling for a full, transparent investigation. Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree told Maine Morning Star at the protest the day of the shooting that she was concerned about the state potentially being shut out. 

The timeline of any investigation, and to what extent the federal and state governments are cooperating with one another, remain unclear. 

The Maine Attorney General’s Office has not responded to repeated questions about whether the federal government is complying with the ongoing investigation. 

Gov. Janet Mills declined to provide an update earlier this month, only saying she “believes” federal authorities are cooperating with the state. Maine Morning Star’s records requests from the state and federal authorities for 911 call logs, communication between state and federal agencies, the coroner’s report, the incident report and other information have been denied.

When federal agents shot and killed Renée Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota, state officials did not receive information from federal authorities until about six months later, and only as a result of a lawsuit. 

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told her that the inspector general’s Boston satellite office was investigating alongside the FBI. But earlier this month, federal agents were reportedly told that the FBI would no longer investigate alleged assaults involving immigration agents, effectively leaving the Department of Homeland Security, under which ICE is housed, to investigate itself, according to sources who spoke with The New York Times. DHS and the Justice Department have denied that change.