Benjamin Gideon rejects the flight justification
Benjamin GideonAttorney for Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero’s family
Gideon said the asserted attempt to drive away could not legally justify deadly force.
“Under our legal system and our Constitution, driving off is not a legal basis or justified basis for the use of lethal force.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was the ICE officer justified in fatally shooting Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero?
On July 13, 2026, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fatally shot Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero during an attempted vehicle stop at Pool and Hill streets in Biddeford, Maine. ICE said Guerrero's vehicle attempted to flee and that the officer fired because he feared for public safety; Maine's initial account said the vehicle moved in the officer's direction. A nearby resident said he heard Guerrero say he had tried to stop and heard the officer say Guerrero tried to hit him. Security cameras recorded gunfire and portions of the aftermath but do not continuously show the vehicle's path at the moment of firing, and the agents reportedly lacked activated body cameras. The Associated Press and relatives identified the shooter as David Brouillette, though DHS has not confirmed his identity. In late September 2026, the Maine attorney general's office declined to comment on its investigation and had announced no finding. The dispute is whether Guerrero's vehicle posed an imminent threat when the officer fired.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
WGME report quoting Vice President JD Vance’s defense of the government’s actions and family attorney Benjamin Gideon’s direct response on the use of lethal force.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Gideon responded to Vice President JD Vance’s defense of the government’s actions.
After the quotation
He accused Vance of misrepresenting the circumstances and called for a correction.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
He directly says the stated conduct could not justify the officer’s lethal force.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- David Brouillette, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, JD Vance
More from this case
Read the full caseBlumenthal co-signs letter citing Durán Guerrero's death as showing inadequate ICE use-of-force training
“On July 13, 2026, an ICE officer in Biddeford, Maine fatally shot Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 25-year-old father, in his car after agents rammed his vehicle and fired multiple rounds through it while executing a warrant for someone else. Mr. Durán Guerrero was not the target of the operation and was authorized to work in the United States. ... These killings, combined with the whistleblower's account of corners cut on both vetting and training, make clear that officers hired during the surge did not receive adequate instruction in de-escalation, use-of-force standards, and vehicle-stop protocols before being sent into communities with the authority to use deadly force.”Read statement
Pingree criticizes body-camera failures after Duran Guerrero's killing
“Our demands are simple: Every immigration enforcement officer must have a working body camera, must be properly trained on how to use it, and be held accountable when that camera isn’t used.”Read statement
Richard Blumenthal says Durán Guerrero was murdered
“State and local authorities have been stymied and stopped in their effort to investigate. ICE has withheld and concealed evidence. The failure to investigate is obvious and deeply wrong and shameful for the federal government. On July 7, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a father and husband, was shot and killed by ICE agents while on his way to work in Houston. And just five days later, Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero was murdered in Maine, leaving behind a wife and three-year-old daughter.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Benjamin Gideon rejects the flight justification
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/1502-gideon-said-the-asserted-attempt-to-drive-away
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Benjamin Gideon rejects the flight justification". First published: 2026-09-22. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1502-gideon-said-the-asserted-attempt-to-drive-away