--- title: "ICE officer shot man in Austin, lawyer says agents 'sideswiped' car" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-09-23T16:05:30.682Z" source_reported: "2026-09-23T09:47:18.682Z" updated: "2026-09-23T16:05:30.682Z" trust_score: 60 critic_score: 61 hype_score: 20 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-09-23T15:45:15.844604+00:00" --- # ICE officer shot man in Austin, lawyer says agents 'sideswiped' car *An asylum seeker reported paralysis after being shot by an ICE officer who was not wearing a body camera.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 60 of 100, higher is better. The central claim is attributed to DHS officials and The Atlantic, with corroboration from multiple outlets. - Craft 61 of 100, higher is better. The reporting includes quotes from the victim's attorney and the victim, and details the sequence of events. - Hype 20 of 100, lower is better. The language used is factual and avoids sensationalism, with a straightforward headline. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - An ICE officer shot Venezuelan national Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez in Austin, Texas. - Pérez's attorney stated agents 'sideswiped' his car before firing shots and that there was not a foot chase. - Pérez had entered the U.S. legally as an asylum-seeker in 2024 and had a valid work permit. - The ICE officer involved in the shooting was reportedly a new recruit and was not wearing a body camera. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez in Austin, Texas. Pérez, who had entered the U.S. legally as an asylum-seeker in 2024 and possessed a valid work permit, reported paralysis on the left side of his body following the incident. According to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials, agents attempted to pull Pérez over after checking his license plate and discovering an outstanding deportation order. ## Disagreement on the incident's initiation Pérez's attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, stated that agents in unmarked vehicles "sideswiped" his car before firing shots inside the vehicle. She also stated there was not a foot chase. DHS officials, however, claim agents attempted to pull Pérez over and detain him before he drove away and guns were drawn. ## What the coverage left out None of the left-rated digests mention the claim by Pérez's attorney that agents "sideswiped" his car before firing shots. The right-rated digest does not mention that Pérez had entered the U.S. legally as an asylum-seeker in 2024 and had a valid work permit, nor does it mention his reported paralysis. ## Who covered it Shares of the 6 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 67% (4) - Centre: 16% (1) - Right: 17% (1) 1 of 7 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-09-23T15:45:15.844604+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 2 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-09-23T16:30:18.242Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - Four left-rated reports highlighted that the ICE officer involved in the shooting was reportedly a new recruit and was not wearing a body camera. HuffPost and Axios noted that federal officials had pledged to outfit all agents with cameras. NBC News reported that it was unclear why the officer was not wearing the issued body camera, and that another officer's body camera captured only partial footage. The Washington Post mentioned the officer joined ICE last year during the agency's hiring spree and that DHS faces scrutiny over vetting and training recruits. ### Centre - The centre-rated report from CBS News stated that sources familiar with the investigation told them the ICE officer who shot a Venezuelan delivery driver was not wearing a body camera at the time of the shooting. ### Right - The right-rated report from Anadolu Ajansı stated that the U.S. immigration agency officer who shot a Venezuelan man in Texas did not use a body camera. The report cited the Washington Post, which reported that the officer had been issued a camera but was not recording during the shooting. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - mixed: 1 - high: 2 - unknown: 1 - veryHigh: 3 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [BizToc](https://biztoc.com/x/e65d5ee5894be194) — ICE Agent Shoots Venezuelan National In Austin During Arrest Attempt - [Anadolu Ajansı](https://aa.com.tr/en/americas/us-immigration-agency-who-shot-venezuelan-man-in-texas-didnt-use-body-camera-report/4066021) — US immigration agency who shot Venezuelan man in Texas didn't use body camera: Report - [Axios](https://axios.com/local/austin/2026/09/23/ice-agent-north-austin-body-camera) — Reports: ICE agent who shot man in North Austin wasn't wearing a body camera - [CBS News](https://cbsnews.com/news/ice-shooting-austin-texas-body-camera) — ICE officer who shot Venezuelan man in Texas wasn't wearing a body camera, sources say - [NBC News](https://nbcnews.com/news/us-news/ice-officer-shot-man-austin-wasnt-wearing-body-camera-rcna599263) — ICE officer who shot man in Austin was issued a body cam but wasn’t wearing it - [HuffPost](https://huffpost.com/entry/ice-officer-austin-shooting-austin-body-camera_n_6ab2b475e4b043d6b568db81) — ICE Officer Who Shot, Potentially Paralyzed Austin Man Wasn't Wearing Bodycam: Report - [The Washington Post](https://washingtonpost.com/immigration/2026/09/22/man-shot-detained-by-ice-is-hospitalized-partial-paralysis-lawyer-says) — ICE officer in Texas shooting was recruit not using a body camera ## Questions **Who was shot by the ICE officer in Austin?** Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a Venezuelan national, was shot by an ICE officer in Austin, Texas. His attorney stated that he had entered the U.S. legally as an asylum-seeker in 2024 and possessed a valid work permit. **What did the attorney for Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez say about the incident?** Pérez's attorney, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, stated that agents "sideswiped" his car before firing shots and that there was not a foot chase. She also reported that Pérez had paralysis on the left side of his body following the shooting. **Was the ICE officer wearing a body camera during the shooting?** Reports indicate that the ICE officer involved in the shooting was not wearing a body camera at the time of the incident. The officer was reportedly a new recruit, and while issued a camera, it was not recording. **What reason did DHS officials give for attempting to pull over Pérez?** DHS officials claim that agents attempted to pull Pérez over after checking his license plate and discovering an outstanding deportation order. They stated that agents tried to detain him before he drove away and guns were drawn. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "ICE officer shot man in Austin, lawyer says agents 'sideswiped' car", https://mediabias.news/politics/ice-officer-shot-man-in-austin-lawyer-says-agents-sideswiped-car