Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday denounced the ICE agents involved in Guerrero’s fatal shooting, calling for accountability after officials said he allegedly tried to run them over.
“Joan Sebastian Guerrero should still be alive,” Harris wrote in a post on X, directly criticizing the circumstances surrounding his death.
Harris said the shooting marked “the second time in a week that ICE agents have killed someone who — by their own admission — was not the subject of their operation.” She added, “Now Sebastian is dead, his killing witnessed by his three-year-old daughter wearing her Bluey pajamas.”
“This cannot be acceptable in America,” Harris wrote.
The former Democratic presidential nominee urged officials to launch an “immediate, independent, and transparent investigation” into Guerrero’s death.
“Anyone responsible for wrongdoing must be held accountable,” Harris said.
The confrontation unfolded Monday morning in Biddeford, Maine, where ICE officers were monitoring the last known address of a migrant who had a deportation order, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
DHS said 26-year-old Joan Sebastian Guerrero left the home in a vehicle and refused to stop for federal officers, prompting a pursuit. Authorities have described Guerrero, a Colombian national, as an “illegal alien” who “attempted to flee the scene” during the ICE operation.
“The vehicle attempted to flee the scene and, fearing for public safety, an officer discharged his weapon,” DHS said in a statement. “The driver of the vehicle was struck, and emergency services were immediately contacted. He passed away from his injuries.”
Lucas Scott, an 18-year-old witness, said officers in green vests surrounded the car and drew their weapons at the driver, who appeared to drive directly at them.
“The car was put into drive and was trying to hit the ICE officer,” Scott told the Portland Press Herald, adding that an agent fired roughly four shots in response.
Guerrero was authorized to work in the US and had been issued a Social Security number, according to Presente! Maine, a Portland-based aid organization.
The DHS Inspector General will investigate the shooting, the agency said.
Last week, Harris called out ICE on X over another deadly shooting involving the agency in Houston.
“Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s family called him ‘El mundo entero’ — the whole world,” Harris said of the victim, whom DHS claims tried to ram his car into ICE officers during a traffic stop.
Araujo was “shot and killed by ICE agents on his way to work,” Harris continued, adding that she is ”outraged by the horrific and cruel actions of ICE under the Trump Administration.”
“Doug and my prayers are with Lorenzo’s wife, his three sons, and all those who loved and knew him,” the potential 2028 Democratic presidential candidate said. “I join his son Ronaldo in calling for an immediate, independent, and transparent investigation.”
