Do ICE Agents Need To Show A Warrant When Detaining Someone?

CBS Boston

May 15, 2025

Videos of federal agents taking people into custody are all over social media. Cellphone cameras have captured arrests from Worcester to Waltham, and some are violent. They often show bystanders demanding answers from ICE agents who often ignore their requests.

A common question heard in these videos is the request to see a warrant.

"Certainly, officers do not need to show a warrant to the public as they are executing that arrest," said Bruce Foucart, a 31-year federal law enforcement agent who was the former Assistant Director for Homeland Security Investigations. "When an officer makes an arrest, generally, they aren't going to show that piece of paper to that person that they are arresting."

An ICE agent talks to a woman filming with a cellphone camera during an arrest in Waltham, Massachusetts/CBS Boston

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