The federal government promised to put body cameras on immigration officers six months ago. That has not fully happened yet. Two people were shot and killed by federal immigration agents in early July 2026, and none of the officers involved were wearing cameras, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

In January 2026, immigration agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis: Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Soon after, DHS said it would quickly get body cameras to immigration officers across the country. By July 16, 2026, that effort was still not finished (NPR).

In early July 2026, federal immigration agents shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas and Joan Durán Guerrero in Maine. DHS said Salgado Araujo, a Mexican man living in the United States, used his car to try to run over an agent. DHS said Durán Guerrero was a public safety threat while trying to flee. None of the officers involved were wearing body cameras, according to DHS (NPR).

Security cameras did capture ICE agents in unmarked cars chasing the van Salgado Araujo was driving before the shooting in Houston (Washington Post). U.S. Representative Garcia held a news conference about the shooting (PBS NewsHour).

U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine) called on DHS to get body cameras to officers as soon as possible after Durán Guerrero was killed in her state (NPR).

White House Border Czar Tom Homan said "hundreds" of cameras were bought and sent to Minnesota after the Good and Pretti shootings, but there were not enough for every ICE agent. Congress approved $31 billion for technology including body cameras, but lawmakers could not agree on a rule requiring ICE to buy or use them. DHS was also given $20 million specifically for body-worn cameras (NPR; AP).

DHS said government shutdowns caused by Democrats interrupted the purchasing process and delayed the cameras. DHS did not answer NPR's questions about how many cameras it currently has or how many it will buy with the new funding (NPR).

The delay has drawn criticism from policy experts and accountability advocates. David Bier, director of immigration studies at the Cato Institute, said DHS's statements show body cameras are not a priority and suggested the agency does not want agents' actions recorded. Lauren Bonds, executive director of the National Police Accountability Project, said body cameras have been important in exposing excessive force and contradicting false accounts in police reports (NPR).

Congressional Republican funding made ICE the most-funded federal law enforcement agency, but the body camera program has been slow and uneven. ICE's budget request for the 2026 fiscal year, published by DHS in June 2025, proposed cutting 19 positions from the Body Worn Cameras program (DHS budget document).

ICE has a policy in place for body cameras. ICE Directive 19010.3, which sets the rules for the Body Worn Camera program, was signed February 18, 2025 (ICE). ICE announced a pilot program in which officers would wear body cameras for planned operations, updated January 24, 2025 (ICE). The agency issued updated standards for body camera use on August 6, 2025 (ICE). ICE announced it was sending out 1,600 body cameras to its officers, updated September 11, 2025 (ICE).

The policy framework existed before the current scrutiny. DHS published a privacy assessment for ICE's body camera use in March 2024, which includes a rule requiring officers to notify people if a camera accidentally records them (DHS). A March 2023 CBP document states that CBP must continue requiring the use of fixed, vehicle, and body-worn cameras for officers interacting with the public (DHS). DHS also maintains a public page explaining that body cameras are used to record traffic stops, arrests, sobriety tests, and interviews, updated April 10, 2025 (DHS).

The NPR investigation was written by Sergio Martinez-Beltran and published at 5:00 a.m. ET on July 16, 2026 (NPR).

The bottom line is straightforward. Four people have died in encounters with federal immigration officers since January 2026. In the two most recent cases, there is no body camera footage to independently confirm or challenge what DHS says happened. Congress approved billions for technology and millions for body cameras specifically, but could not agree on requiring their use. The agency's own budget documents proposed cutting body camera staff. The result is that the executive branch can decide on its own how fast and how widely to deploy the cameras, and critics and lawmakers are left pushing for faster action through public pressure rather than through law.