Watson calls for an investigation that APD assures is independent
Kirk WatsonMayor of Austin, in a statement posted on X and Facebook
Watson said that, given the rogue nature of ICE and the chaos he says ICE is fomenting, there is no reason to be surprised, that Austinites have a right to know what happened, and that, although Austin police were not involved, there needs to be an investigation that APD assures is clear-eyed, as complete as possible, and independent.
“With the rogue nature of ICE and the chaos we’re seeing fomented by ICE, there’s no reason to be surprised. Austinites have a right to know what happened and they have a right to feel safe in their community. Though APD was not involved in the shooting, I believe that there needs to be an investigation that APD assures is clear-eyed, as complete as possible, and independent.”
Original post
Original post
Reporting
Reporting
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should DHS lead the investigation of the ICE shooting of a delivery driver in Austin?
On September 20, 2026, according to Austin officials, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and wounded Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan DoorDash driver, in North Austin, Texas. DHS said Homeland Security Investigations, with FBI assistance, would lead the investigation and described him as an “illegal alien” with a final order of removal who is in federal custody pending removal. His attorney disputes that he entered illegally and says he has a valid work permit. Austin's mayor, Democratic members of Congress and the League of United Latin American Citizens question DHS's and ICE's credibility and have called for an independent investigation. Rep. Chip Roy, a Republican, repeated DHS's description of the man. On September 29, federal prosecutors charged him with assaulting and resisting a federal officer, and the U.S. Attorney's Office said ICE's Homeland Security Investigations is investigating that case.
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Mayor Watson's own post on X, the same statement he posted to Facebook the day of the shooting.
Original post
About this source
Mayor Watson's own statement posted the day of the shooting. The public page shows only the opening lines without sign-in; the full text is reproduced verbatim in FOX 7 Austin's roundup of official reactions.
Reporting
About this source
Roundup that reproduces the full text of statements from Mayor Watson, the Travis County District Attorney, Rep. Casar and others on the day of the shooting.
Reporting
About this source
Local report quoting Mayor Watson's news conference remarks and the District Attorney's statement. It notes the DHS post did not name the man.
Reporting
About this source
CBS News/AP report noting that HSI will lead the investigation with FBI assistance and quoting Mayor Watson on ICE's credibility to investigate.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Watson wrote after an ICE officer shot and wounded a man in North Austin. He began by saying he was “very angry and extremely disappointed” and not surprised.
After the quotation
He said Austin police's Special Investigation Unit was on scene and that Chief Lisa Davis had asked the Texas Rangers to assist. At a news conference, he said the credibility of ICE conducting an investigation by itself and excluding others would not be appropriate.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Relative to DHS's decision to have its own component lead the investigation, Watson criticizes ICE's conduct and insists on an investigation that Austin police can assure is independent; in remarks to reporters he said an ICE-only investigation would not be appropriate. Closest competing label: “Mixed or conditional” loses because the request is a rejection of ICE-only control, not a conditional acceptance.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
More from this case
Read the full caseAustin Council Member Vanessa Fuentes says local law enforcement should join the ICE shooting investigation
“ICE cannot investigate itself, and so it’s important that we have our local law enforcement agency involved in that investigation”Read statement
Travis County DA Garza says the federal government has not shared evidence with Austin police on the ICE shooting
“So far, the information has been flowing from the Austin Police Department to federal law enforcement officials, and as we sit here today, three days away from this shooting, it is incredibly important that the information start to flow both ways To my knowledge, at this point, the federal government has not shared any evidence with the Austin Police Department, and importantly, has not responded to a request from the Austin Police Department to be able to participate in or be allowed to interview the ICE agent who discharged his weapon here in Travis County this past Sunday”Read statement
Castro calls for an independent investigation of the Austin ICE shooting
“There must be an independent investigation, and the ICE officers who shot Wilber in the back should be held accountable.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Watson calls for an investigation that APD assures is independent". First published: 2026-09-21. Last updated: 2026-09-21. https://disputeindex.com/events/1346-watson-said-that-given-the-rogue-nature-of