Democratic Rep. Greg Casar said the shooting happened Sunday morning and called for an independent investigation.
AUSTIN, TEXAS: An ICE agent shot a man in Austin, Texas, on Sunday, September 20, sending him to a hospital as investigators worked to determine what happened at the scene.
Details remained limited hours later, with authorities yet to publicly identify the man or confirm his condition.
Several reports described a blue Toyota Corolla with bullet damage to its passenger-side door, drawing attention from local officials.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson condemned the shooting, saying he was “extremely unhappy” about the incident and demanding answers.
Austin Man Shot by ICE
Democratic Rep. Greg Casar said the shooting happened Sunday morning and called for an independent investigation.
“The horror has come to our city: ICE has shot a person in Austin this morning,” Casar wrote on X.
Casar said he was seeking the immediate release of body-camera footage and a full review of the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
He also called for consequences if an ICE officer was found to have violated the law.
Congressman Calls for Investigation as Austin Shooting Draws Scrutiny
The congressman went further in a second post, saying Austin residents would protest what he described as the federal immigration enforcement campaign.
His statements reflected his political position and were made while investigators had yet to release a detailed account of the shooting.
Authorities had not initially established publicly what led to the gunfire, who fired the shots, or whether anyone else was injured. Later reports said the shooting occurred during a traffic stop and that the man was shot in the torso. He was hospitalized in serious but stable condition.
Austin City Council Member Mike Siegel, who was at the scene, told media outlets that the area was being treated as a federal crime scene. He said he wanted Austin officials involved in the investigation.
The bullet-damaged Toyota was among the clearest visible signs of the incident at the scene. The dark blue Corolla had damage to its passenger-side door and what appeared to be bullet holes.
ICE Shootings Face Scrutiny
The Austin shooting comes as federal immigration agents face scrutiny over several shootings during immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota and elsewhere this year.
Two of the most prominent cases involved the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both U.S. citizens, during federal immigration enforcement activity in Minneapolis in January.
Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent on January 7 during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis.
On January 24, Pretti, an intensive-care nurse, was fatally shot by federal immigration agents during another confrontation in Minneapolis.
The two deaths sparked protests and renewed debate over the use of force by federal immigration officers. The incidents have also prompted investigations and calls for greater transparency.