(The Center Square) — A group of congressional Democrats held a "shadow" hearing in Maine on Monday to take testimony from witnesses to the shooting death of a man by an ICE agent last month.
Monday's field hearing in Biddeford, titled "Seeking Justice in Biddeford: Oversight of ICE's Use of Force in the Death of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero," comes after the July 13 shooting death of Guerrero in Biddeford during an encounter with ICE agents.
It was organized by House minority member Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, and included House Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Bennie Thompson, D-Miss. and House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., and other Democrats.
Federal investigators said ICE agents opened fire when Durán Guerrero, a Colombian national, veered his car toward an agent who was conducting surveillance outside the Biddeford residence.
When the driver failed to stop the officer opened fire in self-defense, the Department of Homeland Security said. None of the officers involved were wearing body cameras at the time, the agency said.
But Clark, the House's Minority Whip, said at Monday's hearing that Durán Guerrero's death was a "cold-blooded murder at the hands of a dangerous, out-of-control ICE agent" and called the incident "a despicable moral stain on our country."
"This isn’t someone ICE was looking for. This isn’t a warrant they were executing," Clark said in remarks. "This wasn’t a suspect. He hadn’t done anything illegal. This was a random traffic stop that quickly escalated into outright murder."
Others who spoke at Monday's hearing included Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, Biddeford Mayor Liam LaFountain, state lawmakers, immigration advocates, and members of Durán Guerrero's family, as well as their attorney.
Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey's office said Monday that "there is ongoing cooperation with the federal government" on the shooting death investigation.
The statement said Frey is "keenly aware of the public interest in this case and is committed to a thorough, impartial investigation that ensures meaningful transparency and public confidence."
"While completeness and transparency are objectives of equal importance, protecting the integrity of the investigation takes priority while evidence is still being gathered," the AG's office said.
Maine's Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins and Independent Sen. Angus King recently wrote to the Department of Justice urging it "to cooperate with state and local law enforcement to ensure that federal investigations into this shooting remain impartial and comprehensive." They've also called on DHS's inspector General to conduct an independent federal investigation.