ICE Is Using Deadly Chokeholds. Congress Must Stop Them.

ICE agents are using chokeholds and neck restraints that can kill in seconds. In fact, a detainee’s death in El Paso, Texas was just ruled a homicide after a chokehold was used in custody. But ICE, DHS, and Congress are looking the other way.

A devastating ProPublica investigation uncovered more than 40 documented cases of ICE and DHS agents using potentially lethal chokeholds. The footage shows agents cutting off airways, forcing people to the ground, and applying pressure medical experts warn can cause brain damage or death with little warning. Many of the people targeted were nonviolent. Some were U.S. citizens.

Congress has the power to stop this now. Lawmakers can withhold funding from DHS until it explicitly bans chokeholds in immigration enforcement, as well as enacting broader reforms to keep us safe.

Tell Congress: Condemn ICE’s use of chokeholds against immigrants, peaceful protesters, and citizens in over 40 cases over the past year. Vote against funding until DHS enacts reforms to ban chokeholds, end excessive use of force, and protect our constitutional rights.

Chokeholds are unpredictable and deadly. That’s why these tactics are widely banned by police departments across the country. Yet ICE continues to use them anyway — shielded by secrecy, weak oversight, and congressional silence.

This isn’t about a few rogue agents. More than 40 cases point to a systemic failure and a culture of impunity inside immigration enforcement. And because ICE arrests often happen in homes, on sidewalks, and at protests, without body cameras or witnesses, it’s difficult to tell how frequently chokeholds are used with no accountability.

If ICE won’t do what’s right and stop agents from using deadly chokeholds and excessive force, it’s time for us to demand Congress act.

Add your name now, and demand Congress take action to protect human life and basic justice.

The petition to Congress reads: "Condemn ICE’s use of chokeholds against immigrants, peaceful protesters, and citizens in over 40 cases over the past year. Vote against funding until DHS enacts reforms to ban chokeholds, end excessive use of force, and protect our constitutional rights."