ICE has not yet purchased translation technology promised for new agents

Immigration Customs and Enforcement has not yet purchased new translation technology that it promised nearly four months ago would replace the Spanish course requirement for agents as part of an effort to speed up the agency’s hiring process, according to two Department of Homeland Security officials.

In August, ICE officials told reporters that the agency had purchased new “robust translation services” that agents could use in the field while continuing immigration arrests under President Donald Trump’s deportation policy. Caleb Vitello, who was responsible for training new ICE recruits at the time, described the new technology as “much more effective” than the five-week Spanish course.

ICE had considered providing agents with body-worn, AI-powered translation services that can be used on body cameras, but has not purchased any, the two DHS officials said.

The lack of Spanish classes or body-worn translation devices for new ICE agents when they make arrests has raised concerns about possible communication misunderstandings that could endanger agents and residents of the communities they target, officials said.

The Trump administration has sought to speed up ICE’s recruiting process to meet its goal of hiring 10,000 new agents by the end of the year.

An ICE spokesperson said in a statement that ICE had replaced the five-week Spanish course that was required through July for new officers with “a more robust translation service” but declined to specify what type of translation services the agency offers..

The agency relied on a translation hotline that agents can call when processing immigrants in an office, and which it continues to use, DHS officials said.

“Language courses, which previously covered only a specific dialect of Spanish, have been replaced with robust translation and interpretation services that apply to multiple languages,” an ICE spokesperson said in a statement. “ICE frequently encounters native speakers of a wide range of languages, so modern technology solutions are more effective resources on the ground. »

The U.S. Border Patrol still requires Spanish language training for new agents, according to the Office of Personnel Management.

The body-worn translation technology combines body cameras that many officers already wear on their vests with AI translation tools and can detect up to 50 languages. To use it, an officer presses a button on the body camera and commands it to translate the spoken language. An AI-generated voice then repeats the words in English.

Although ICE has so far not issued new devices to new agents, more than 200 police departments across the country are adopting the new technology.

The police department in Joliet, Illinois, a city of 150,000 about an hour from Chicago, began using devices developed by Axon Enterprise in June.

Department officials told NBC News that its officers have used the device in more than 1,800 encounters involving 23 different languages.

Officer Charles Moore said their presence helped build community confidence in local law enforcement.

“Seeing people when they know they’re understood, you see their faces light up,” Moore said in an interview with NBC News.

Multiple clashes involving federal agents and migrants in major U.S. cities have turned violent in recent months, although it is unclear whether language problems may have contributed.

In one of the latest high-profile cases, a Mexican man and a deputy marshal were shot and killed after a federal agent opened fire while trying to arrest the man in downtown Los Angeles earlier this week, prosecutors said. Both are expected to recover.

Jason Houser, former ICE chief of staff under the Biden administration, said the lack of basic Spanish skills for agents risks increasing the chances of dangerous encounters.

“It puts both the migrant at risk and potentially law enforcement, because you’re taking away their ability to communicate openly with those they interact with,” Houser said.

With 65 million Latinos in the United States, it is increasingly common for police departments to require Spanish language training. Most police departments in large cities require it. And in Texas, it’s mandatory for all police officers.

In March 2025, under the Biden administration, ICE announced a pilot program to deploy body cameras to 1,600 of ICE’s 6,500 agents. The Trump administration has made no public effort to expand beyond that initial figure of 1,600.

In addition to helping protect law enforcement officers, language translation could reduce confusion for members of the public, immigration advocates and attorneys say.

In August, Raquel Sanchez and her husband were driving to work in Washington, D.C., when they said they were stopped by seven unmarked ICE vehicles. An agent at his car door shouted, “What is your status in the United States?”

In the recording of the encounter, she and her husband had difficulty responding because they do not speak English and the officers did not know Spanish. “I was asking them if we could speak in Spanish, but they kept speaking in English,” she said in a telephone interview with NBC News.

Sanchez said she and her husband were handcuffed and driven for an hour to an ICE processing facility. She said she told officers they had teenagers in the home and her attorney successfully lobbied to have her released with an ankle monitor. Her husband was transferred to an ICE detention center a few hours away, according to Sanchez and her lawyer.

In a statement, an ICE spokesperson said, “ICE makes arrests based on probable cause, and if officers know you are the target, they will make the arrest. If the subject is unknown, there are several ways to establish reasonable suspicion and probable cause.”

“Additionally, ICE determines post-arrest custody, which may include returning an illegal alien to ATD, based on specific circumstances, such as medical needs,” the ICE spokesperson said, referring to alternatives to detention such as an ankle monitor.

The Corpus Christi, Texas, police department, where fewer than half of its 260 officers are native Spanish speakers, uses translation devices generated by Axon AI. Lt. José Gonzalez, who oversees the department’s professional standards, said that as a native Spanish speaker, he was skeptical of the new technology. But after seeing how it helped officers on the ground over the past few months, he now believes in it.

“It’s very important because if you can’t communicate with someone during a traffic stop, you can’t tell if there are weapons in the car,” Gonzalez said. Still, Gonzalez emphasized that no technology is foolproof. “What if your camera malfunctions?” » he said. “You have to have a basis to continue to communicate.”

Cristina Lozano Argüelles, assistant professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, agrees. She called new AI translation technology “exciting,” but she doesn’t think it should replace Spanish language training.

“Spanish language training for law enforcement is not just about learning vocabulary, but about building confidence,” Argüelles said. “When officers can communicate directly with Spanish-speaking residents, interactions can be calmer, more respectful and more efficient. »