stops

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have been ordered not to engage in high-speed car chases and to make vehicle stops only if they have completed specific training, under new internal guidance issued after several drivers were shot in encounters with ICE.

A memo sent to officers in ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division and obtained by the Associated Press warned they are not any under circumstances authorized to chase vehicles that fail to pull over. Instead, officers should take down the vehicles’ information for further investigation, according to the memo signed by ICE’s executive associate director, Marcos D. Charles, and dated Wednesday.

The new guidance comes after ICE-initiated vehicle stops have repeatedly escalated when drivers have refused to cooperate or tried to flee. ICE agents have opened fire during more than a dozen such encounters since last year, killing at least four people and wounding several others.

President Trump’s administration has faced internal tension over how to handle traffic stops, which are seen as particularly high-risk encounters.

After fatal shootings of drivers in Maine and Texas in July, ICE officers were directed to temporarily pause most vehicle stops. But the next day, Trump went on social media to direct the agency to continue traffic stops, calling them “one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools.”

ICE has faced intense pressure from the White House to deport more people who are in the country illegally, and its arrests have reached record numbers. At the same time, the agency’s rapid hiring spree last year resulted in some poorly vetted and trained officers hitting the streets.

In a statement, ICE downplayed the significance of the memo, which said the new guidance was intended to replace and amend previous directives issued earlier this year, last year and in 2018.

“Occasionally, ICE leadership issues guidance reminders to law enforcement officers,” the statement said. “Vehicle stops and arrests of illegal aliens continue.”

The new memo outlines steps intended to improve the safety of vehicle stops for ICE officers, drivers they are targeting, their passengers and the public.

The memo told ICE’s field office directors that they must ensure vehicles used for traffic stops have lights and sirens that let the public know they are law enforcement vehicles when activated. Underthe guidance, all officers on the scenes of vehicle stops must wear and activate their body cameras.

In addition, only officers who have completed one of five specific agency training courses can conduct vehicle stops. Officers who have not completed the courses can participate in vehicle stops only “in a support capacity” as passengers and cannot be the drivers of any of the vehicles involved.

The guidance says ICE officers can continue to use a controversial technique known as pinning, which is defined as “using a vehicle or physical barrier to trap or stop a car,” but only if they have received special training. Similarly, only trained officers can use spike strips that deflate tires to prevent drivers from fleeing.

The memo came the day that courtroom testimony highlighted ways in which two ICE officers involved in a vehicle stop, pursuit and shooting that wounded a delivery driver in Austin last month would not have complied with the new guidance.

During a bond hearing for Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, testimony showed that the officer who shot him wasn’t wearing a body-worn camera. The ICE officer who did have a camera was driving in a separate car and turned it off during the pursuit.

Prosecutors presented surveillance video that showed an ICE agent chasing Garces Perez at high speeds through residential streets after he fled an initial traffic stop.

Garces Perez faces federal assault charges after investigators say he struck an ICE officer with his driver’s side mirror. That officer then shot into Perez’s vehicle, lodging a bullet in his back, officials say.

Attorneys for Garces Perez have called the charges against him “retaliation” and have argued that the camera footage was inconclusive because it didn’t fully capture the moment when he allegedly tried to flee.

Foley writes for the Associated Press. AP reporter Anna Wilder contributed to this report from Austin, Texas.

CENTRAL Cee and Yasmin Hadlow’s romance has ramped up a notch – as insiders tell me he’s going all out to make her his girlfriend.

Just weeks after revealing he fell for Yasmin, 23, after watching her cracking on inside the Love Island villa, the Sprinter star, 28, is using every tool in his armoury to get her interested.

And the first is his bank balance.

Onlookers spotted the London-born rapper, real name Oakley Caesar-Su, in a very select part of Harrods on Friday with Yasmin, where he was overheard telling her: “Buy whatever you want.”

An onlooker said: “Cench seems he knows how to treat the ladies and Yasmin is no exception.

“Before they went on a date to his party at 77 London, he had organised a shopping experience for her.

“He had it all arranged to go to the private area of the store and told her to spend whatever she wanted and he’d pick up the bill.

“Cench wanted Yasmin to choose whatever she wanted for the date and more.

“She absolutely loved it. It seemed like no one had ever done anything like that for her before.

“You could tell he’s really into her because he was happy to spend thousands on her to make her feel special.

“They’re not officially dating but it seems like Cench was making a heavy play for her to want to see him as boyfriend material.”

We first revealed they were hooking up last week, after Yasmin was seen on a date with the Cee.

He made a move on Yasmin earlier this summer while she was still dating her villa co-star Tommy Stagg.

When asked if he had a celebrity crush, on 60 Seconds With Missy, Cench replied: “I do have one, I’ve got one I’m sure. Yasmin from Love Island.”

Helpfully, Yasmin and Tommy split not long after flying back from Mallorca – and Cee made his move.

Confirming their break up, Yasmin said: “Me and Tommy aren’t together anymore.

“It ended up being… It was just a lot to adjust to on the outside.

“We just ended up saying that we’ve got a lot going on. Our lives essentially weren’t aligning on the outside, but we’re still friends.”

Insiders said it was still early days between the pair but admitted Cee was smitten.

“He’s acting like he’s won the jackpot,” a source told me.

“Cench really fell for Yasmin after seeing her on the show and then on social media.

“Now he’s managed to get her on a date he is going all out to show Yasmin how special he thinks she is.

“It’s early days between them but Cench is absolutely mad for Yasmin.”

When I recently flew with Jet2, I was gobsmacked to be stopped for something that I didn’t realise wasn’t allowed, and I ended up on the floor of Manchester Airport…

Holiday mode was fully activated. I was ready for sunshine, a cold drink, and a smooth flight to Rhodes. Instead, my trip kicked off with an embarrassing baggage showdown at the Jet2 check-in desk.

My allowance included a 22kg checked bag, a 10kg cabin bag, and a personal item. For ten years, I’ve flown with Jet2 and mixed and matched those weights without a hitch. As long as my total luggage – a suitcase, rucksack and cross-body bag – was under 32kg, it was never an issue. Until this time.

I was told that I’d have to pay £45 for my suitcase because it was 26.6kg – even though my rucksack only weighed 4kg and I was still under my total 32kg allowance. Employees demanded that I take things out of my case and put them into my rucksack or pay extra.

Several times, I explained there was no room, and we were at an impasse, as there was no way I was giving them more money when my luggage allowance in total was underweight.

A manager eventually told me I could unpack my things into a spare bag if I had one, which isn’t in Jet2’s policy as an option. It left me humiliated, sifting through bikinis, knickers, and outfits on the floor of Manchester Airport, which definitely isn’t ideal.

A spokesperson from Manchester Airport said Jet2 is usually “one of the most reasonable airlines” and assumed I’d fallen victim to a mistake. He was probably right, considering that on our return flight from Rhodes, with the exact same weight in our cases, the staff didn’t bat an eyelid. They just printed our passes and waved us through. It turns out I’m not the only one at the mercy of check-in desk moods. Over on TikTok, passengers have shared similar stories, with one user hitting the nail on the head: “Must just be luck of the draw whether you get someone having a good or bad day.” When contacted, Jet2 doubled down on their policy, stating: “Hold baggage and hand luggage allowances are separate and cannot be combined.” They described forcing me to repack as a “flexible solution.” Personally, I think the most flexible solution would have been letting my underweight luggage go into the hold as it always had. It’s all going on the same plane, after all. But no, I was left to struggle my way through to the boarding gate with a backpack, my Hello Kitty bag, and a cross-body, which was actually a pain because I was unable to assist my mum with any of her belongings. How to avoid this issue After being humiliated like that, I’d definitely stick strictly to the weight limits and not rely on the fact that you’ll get nice, understanding staff members. Thankfully, most of the Jet2 staff I’ve come across in the past have been lovely, I just got unlucky this time, but if I chose to fly with them again, I wouldn’t be relying on ‘common sense’ to prevail any longer. As one clever TikToker pointed out, a £5 digital luggage scale from Amazon can be a total lifesaver. They are spot-on and remove all the guesswork. In the future, I’ll definitely be making sure that my luggage is exactly on the allowance, or is slightly less, because I don’t want to go through that again. So, learn from my mistake and weigh your case! And do not make any assumptions that ‘it’ll be fine,’ because I thought that when my rucksack weighed significantly less, and all it got me was hot, sweaty, annoyed, and on the floor of the airport!