Bruce Blakeman says the man "went after ICE agents" and blames Hochul's sanctuary policies for the shooting
Bruce BlakemanNassau County Executive and Republican candidate for governor, speaking to reporters before a Trump rally in Syracuse
Bruce Blakeman, the Republican candidate for New York governor and Nassau County Executive, told reporters before a Trump rally in Syracuse that he was outraged that Gov. Kathy Hochul would take the side of a man he described as a convicted felon, an alleged drug dealer and a gang member who was trying to run down ICE agents. He said the shooting happened only because of Hochul's sanctuary policies and that the man should not have been in the state.
“I'm outraged that Kathy Hochul would take the sides of somebody who was a convicted felon, someone who was an alleged drug dealer, gang member, someone who was trying to run down ICE agents ... It only happened because of Kathy Hochul's sanctuary policies. That guy should not have been in this state. That guy was in this state illegally. He's a convicted felon. He's a drug dealer. He's involved in gang activity, and he went after ICE agents.”
Reporting

Where this statement fits
Was ICE justified in shooting a man in a car in Marble Hill?
On October 8, 2026, an ICE officer shot a man in a car near Marble Hill Avenue and West 225th Street in Marble Hill, a neighborhood the NYPD placed in the Bronx and ABC News and The Intercept placed in upper Manhattan. DHS said ICE officers were conducting a targeted operation in the Bronx to arrest a man from the Dominican Republic with a prior grand larceny conviction and multiple prior arrests, and that an officer discharged his weapon during the incident. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said early reports indicated agents surrounded the man and his 5-year-old child in the car before firing multiple rounds. The NYPD said it was not involved and that the man was conscious at a hospital. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch later said evidence at the scene indicates at least one ICE agent discharged seven rounds, striking the driver in the neck. At a press conference on October 9, ICE's Marcos Charles said the man accelerated into two ICE vehicles and toward other officers, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the agents feared for their lives. A federal judge later barred ICE from removing the man from the country or moving him outside New York and New Jersey while his habeas corpus petition proceeds.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
CNY Central live blog of the October 9, 2026 Trump rally for Bruce Blakeman in Syracuse, including Blakeman's remarks to reporters on the Marble Hill shooting.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Blakeman spoke to reporters before the rally at which President Trump was due to campaign for him. Gov. Kathy Hochul had said she expressed outrage to Trump and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and urged them to halt ICE enforcement in New York.
After the quotation
Blakeman then spoke to the crowd. CNN, citing a law enforcement source, reported that the man's record includes a 2023 robbery arrest to which he pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of grand larceny and that he has a pending indictment for the sale of a controlled substance.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is whether the ICE officer was justified in shooting the man in the car. Blakeman says the man "went after ICE agents" and blames the shooting on Hochul's sanctuary policies while objecting to Hochul taking the man's side, which treats the agents' response as warranted, so we labeled it Defended or excused. He does not use the word justified. The closest competing label is Challenged the characterization, because he is disputing Hochul's framing; he goes on to defend the agents' conduct by blaming the man, so it loses.
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More from this case
Read the full caseHochul, at the governor debate, says of the shooting "That's not how you conduct yourself. ICE is out of control."
“he'd be fine if ICE agents shoot into cars, shoot guns into vehicles not knowing who's inside, and could have killed a five-year-old child ... That's not how you conduct yourself. ICE is out of control.”Read statement
Blakeman, asked at the governor debate about ICE's tactics, says the shooting "never would have happened but for your sanctuary policy"
“the question that New Yorkers have to ask is what was this guy doing in New York in the first place? It's because Kathy Hochul has made us a sanctuary state. ... Kathy Hochul has taken that ability away from us. That's why things like this happen. ... it never would have happened but for your sanctuary policy.”Read statement
Former ICE official Scott Mechkowski says whether the man was "using his car as a weapon" decides the case
“A vehicle driven at an officer is a deadly weapon, and I taught officers to treat it that way. ... DHS hasn’t yet said what that officer saw in that moment. That question decides this case: was the man behind the wheel using his car as a weapon against an officer? The footage will answer it.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Bruce Blakeman says the man "went after ICE agents" and blames Hochul's sanctuary policies for the shooting". First published: 2026-10-09. Last updated: 2026-10-09. https://disputeindex.com/events/5356-bruce-blakeman-the-republican-candidate-for-new-york