Magistrate Judge Austin says the court has "some skepticism about some of what the government has presented"
Charles D. AustinU.S. Magistrate Judge presiding over the sentencing
At the April 27 sentencing hearing, Magistrate Judge Charles D. Austin said the court has "some skepticism about some of what the government has presented" based on "individuals who have not been identified or appeared in court", and said "This would not be the first case where an affidavit was found not to adequately capture the circumstances".
“The court has some skepticism about some of what the government has presented based on some individuals who have not been identified or appeared in court ... This would not be the first case where an affidavit was found not to adequately capture the circumstances”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was ICE justified in shooting Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins in Glen Burnie, Maryland?
On December 24, 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers stopped a white work van driven by Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins in Glen Burnie, Maryland, and fired at it, wounding him. The Department of Homeland Security said that day that he refused to turn off the engine, rammed ICE vehicles and drove directly at officers, and that they fired defensively; it also said a passenger in his van was injured. On January 8, 2026, Anne Arundel County police said the injured passenger was already in custody in an ICE vehicle, and DHS then said he was in one of the ICE vehicles. An FBI affidavit says two ICE officers fired, one about one to two shots and the other multiple shots, and attributes to them accounts that the van moved toward officers at speed and that one believed he would be struck, while Sousa-Martins told the FBI he drove away because he believed he would be shot. He pleaded guilty on April 27 to destroying government property, and a count of resisting or interfering with federal officers was dismissed. The dispute is whether the officers' decision to fire was warranted by the threat they faced, and whether DHS's account of the encounter was accurate.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Report from the April 27 hearing, including the judge's remarks, the sentencing positions of prosecutors and defense lawyers, and Sousa-Martins's statement to the court. No transcript was located.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Sousa-Martins pleaded guilty to one count of destroying government property. Prosecutors argued for a sentence of up to six months, and his lawyers asked for time served.
After the quotation
The judge sentenced him to time served. The Banner described the first remark as an apparent reference to federal agents and reported that the judge also chided prosecutors for failing to produce testimony underlying the charges.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point includes the federal account of the encounter. Austin expresses skepticism about parts of the government's presentation and says affidavits have been found not to capture circumstances in other cases, without ruling on whether the shooting was warranted, so his remarks challenge the government's account rather than condemn the shooting.
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More from this case
Read the full caseAttorney Alice Barrett says ICE's use of lethal force against Sousa-Martins "was excessive and dangerous"
“This plea agreement and the hearing at which he was sentenced don't change anything about the bottom line of his case, which is that ICE's use of lethal force against him was excessive and dangerous”Read statement
Van Hollen says "DHS lied about the circumstances surrounding a nonfatal shooting" in Maryland
“In my State of Maryland, DHS lied about the circumstances surrounding a nonfatal shooting, and they were exposed in their lies because of a local county investigation that showed that DHS was plain wrong.”Read statement
DHS's McLaughlin says Serrano-Esquivel "was a passenger in one of the ICE vehicles that was rammed" and the driver "weaponized his vehicles"
“Solomon Antonio Serrano-Esquivel, an illegal alien from El Salvador, was a passenger in one of the ICE vehicles that was rammed. ... The driver refused and attempted to flee, then weaponized his vehicles and began ramming his van into several ICE vehicles. He then drove his van directly at ICE officers, it appeared he was trying to run them over. Fearing for their lives and public safety, defensively fired their service weapons, striking the driver.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Magistrate Judge Austin says the court has "some skepticism about some of what the government has presented"". First published: 2026-09-25. Last updated: 2026-09-25. https://disputeindex.com/events/2583-at-the-april-27-sentencing-hearing-magistrate-judge