Paul Perez is the national president of the National Border Patrol Council, the labor union that represents U.S. Border Patrol agents and support personnel. He previously served as the union's Vice President South.
Case
Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and CBP officer Raymundo Gutierrez fatally shot ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. DHS said he was armed and violently resisted; bystander video shows agents had already disarmed him before firing.
Role at the time: President of the National Border Patrol Council
Statement summary
Paul Perez, president of the National Border Patrol Council, said in an ABC News interview that the union believes the agent who shot Alex Pretti will be justified, and that the agent must give a statement to investigators explaining why he fired.
“But at the end of the day, we've got to make sure that he gives his statement and talks to the authorities and identifies why he took the shots. And we believe he will be justified at the end of the day, based on the totality of the circumstances.”
The case asks whether the agents were justified in fatally shooting Alex Pretti. Asked directly whether the shooting was justified, Perez says the union believes the agent will be justified based on the totality of the circumstances, while saying the agent still has to give his account to investigators. That is an argument that the shooting was justifiable, so we used Defended or excused.
Statement dates: January 27, 2026
Statement dates: January 27, 2026
