US 'secretive' program training civilians in firearms, exposed

A recent investigation revealed that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has been operating a secretive program to train civilian volunteers in firearms, surveillance, and tactics used in raids against immigrants and the use of lethal force against people.

The program, known as "Citizens Academies", was revealed through thousands of internal ICE documents obtained by the Immigrant Defense Project and Organized Communities Against Deportations via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

The whistleblower group has legal support from Beyond Legal Aid, Latino Justice, and the Center for Constitutional Rights.

Published on October 1, 2024, these documents detail the scope and operations of ICE's "Citizens Academies", which began in Puerto Rico in 2014 and expanded nationally in 2019.

Initiated in 2014 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the academies were "fully implemented" across ICE field offices during the Trump administration.

The first academy was held in New York City in 2017, involving 19 volunteers from diverse backgrounds, including law firms and financial institutions, rather than traditional vigilante profiles.

The program was paused in 2020 when ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) branch, responsible for arresting and deporting non-citizens, announced an academy in Chicago.

It remains unclear whether the program has resumed or not.

'Violent and racist'

According to an ICE spokesperson, Citizens Academies are still active nationwide. It is managed by Homeland Security Investigations, the ICE branch responsible for intelligence, international affairs, and surveillance.

Similar programs are being carried out by other law enforcement agencies, such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), according to comments made to Documented.

Internal ICE documents from 2022 detail the program's objectives, which include offering "a series of real-world experiences and investigative activities" similar to those performed by ICE agents.

The documents include detailed images showing where to strike with a baton or a weapon to cause harm to the human body.

The materials also contain presentations on firearm handling, including aiming at targets and proper shooting stances, with training involving military-style rifles.

In Atlanta, Citizen Academy drills in October 2019 included shooting at human-like mannequins with M4 assault rifles. Additionally, the training covers ICE's "use of force" guidelines, which encompass deadly force, with one slide suggesting the phrase "drop the gun" as a potential justification for lethal actions.

"It is a violent and racist program," said Ian Head, Open Records project manager at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR).

Head added that the program includes "individuals role-playing as aggressive ICE officers are allowed to handle firearms and fire them during simulations where agents act as immigrants".

Head also estimated that up until 2020, about 200 civilians were likely trained in these tactics in a three-year period.

'To romanticise brutal tactics'

According to reports, during the program's active period, HSI agents launched thousands of workplace investigations nationwide, occasionally arresting hundreds of workers in a single day.

The agency also expanded its extensive surveillance capabilities by accumulating "bulk domestic surveillance databases," reportedly used beyond its authorised scope and stated mission, as noted by the Electronic Privacy Information Center.

Director of the hotline at the Immigrant Defense Project, Genia Blaser, commented on that to Documented and said, "Citizens Academies are a propaganda effort to romanticise ICE's brutal tactics".

"They recruited individuals who become force multipliers for ICE in their communities, stoking the fires of vigilantism."

Halted operations

The program faced significant backlash, leading to its suspension in 2020, following protests and a local campaign in Chicago, where residents received an invitation from ICE to join a "scenario-based training" focused on "defensive tactics, firearms familiarisation, and targeted arrests."

This training was set to be conducted for the first time by ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) branch, which aims to arrest and deport non-citizens. It was scheduled for September 15, coinciding with Mexico's Independence Day.

Just a week before the scheduled date, ERO announced that the Chicago academy would be postponed to 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with no specific date provided. The program was subsequently halted nationwide.

Despite the program's suspension, ICE's Homeland Security Investigations continues to operate the academies to enhance “public understanding” of its mission, according to an ICE spokesperson.