Untitled Document

[00:00:00] Thank you, Senator. Thank you, Senator [00:00:02] Blumenthal, Representative Garcia, [00:00:04] members of the committee. My name is [00:00:05] Ryan Schwank. I swore an oath to uphold [00:00:09] the Constitution [00:00:11] when I joined ICE on August 1st, 2021 as [00:00:15] an assistant chief counsel. [00:00:17] I followed that oath for four and a half [00:00:19] years, working side by side with ICE [00:00:22] officers. and I followed it when I [00:00:25] resigned on February 13, 2026, a little [00:00:30] over a week ago, so that I could speak [00:00:32] to you today. [00:00:34] I am here because I am duty bound [00:00:37] to report the legally required training [00:00:39] program at the ICE [00:00:43] Academy is deficient, defective, and [00:00:46] broken. [00:00:48] Five months ago, I was asked to teach [00:00:50] the law to new cadets at the ICE Academy [00:00:53] in Gleno, Georgia, where ICE is training [00:00:55] its new inexperienced recruits. [00:01:00] I volunteered those without law [00:01:01] enforcement training. I volunteered to [00:01:03] take on this assignment based on my [00:01:05] experience in law enforcement oversight, [00:01:08] including at the state and local level [00:01:10] prior to my work with ICE. On my first [00:01:13] day, I received secretive orders to [00:01:15] teach new cadets to violate the [00:01:17] Constitution [00:01:19] by entering homes without a judicial [00:01:21] warrant. [00:01:24] For the last 5 months, I watched ICE [00:01:26] dismantle the training program, cutting [00:01:29] 240 hours [00:01:32] of vital classes from a 584-hour [00:01:34] program. classes that teach the [00:01:36] Constitution, our legal system, firearms [00:01:40] training, the use of force, lawful [00:01:43] arrests, proper detention, and the [00:01:46] limits of officers authority. For [00:01:49] example, they ceased all of the legal [00:01:52] instructions regarding use of force. [00:01:56] This means that cadets are not taught [00:01:58] what it means to be objectively [00:02:00] reasonable. The very standard which the [00:02:02] law requires them to meet when deciding [00:02:05] whether or not to use deadly force. Our [00:02:08] jobs as instructors are to teach them so [00:02:10] well that they can make splitsecond [00:02:13] decisions about what they can and cannot [00:02:15] do in life or death situations. [00:02:18] Yet, in the name of churning out an [00:02:20] endless stream of officers, DHS [00:02:23] leadership has dismantled the academic [00:02:25] and practical tests that we need to know [00:02:27] if cadets can safely and lawfully [00:02:30] perform their job. [00:02:33] All to satisfy an administration [00:02:35] demanding they train thousands of new [00:02:37] officers before the end of the year. [00:02:41] DHS told the public that new cadets [00:02:45] receive all the training they need to [00:02:46] perform their duties, that no critical [00:02:49] material or standards have been cut. [00:02:52] This is a lie. [00:02:56] ICE made the program shorter and they [00:02:58] removed so many essential parts that [00:03:00] what remains is a dangerous husk. No [00:03:04] reasonable person would believe a [00:03:06] training program suddenly cut nearly in [00:03:09] half could meet the minimum legal [00:03:11] requirements. These aren't abstract [00:03:13] rules. They're required in regulations [00:03:15] such as HCFR287G1. [00:03:18] Congress requires immigration officers [00:03:21] to meet minimum standards for a reason. [00:03:26] ICE cannot lawfully perform their [00:03:28] duties, make arrests, carry weapons, and [00:03:31] use force without passing appropriate [00:03:33] training. [00:03:35] New cadets are graduating from the [00:03:37] academy despite widespread concerns [00:03:39] among training staff that even in the [00:03:41] final days of training, the cadets [00:03:43] cannot demonstrate a solid grasp of the [00:03:45] tactics or the law required to perform [00:03:48] their jobs. Without reform, ICE will [00:03:51] graduate thousands of new officers who [00:03:54] do not know their constitutional duty, [00:03:57] do not know the limits of their [00:04:00] authority, and who do not have the [00:04:02] training to recognize an unlawful order. [00:04:05] That should scare everyone. DHS assures [00:04:08] the public these cadets can get the job [00:04:10] training on compensate for anything [00:04:12] missing at the academy. This is a lie. [00:04:15] Many graduates go to their home office [00:04:18] just long enough to get their gun, their [00:04:20] badge, and their body armor before [00:04:22] deploying to places like Minneapolis and [00:04:25] other ICE operations with minimal [00:04:26] supervision. [00:04:28] It's shocking that anyone would think [00:04:30] this is safe or responsible. [00:04:32] And this pattern of lies is not [00:04:34] isolated. It extends beyond the training [00:04:36] program to include deceiving Congress [00:04:38] and the public about the rules followed [00:04:40] by ICE officers once they graduate. On [00:04:43] my first day at the academy, I was [00:04:46] instructed to read and return a memo in [00:04:48] my supervisor's presence, which claimed [00:04:50] ICE officers could enter homes without a [00:04:52] judicial warrant. The acting ICE [00:04:54] director authorized the very conduct [00:04:56] that DHS in its own 2025 legal training [00:05:00] materials had called the chief evil [00:05:02] against which the wording of the fourth [00:05:04] amendment is directed. That is, physical [00:05:07] entry of the home without consent or a [00:05:10] proper warrant. Never in my career had I [00:05:13] ever received such a blatantly unlawful [00:05:16] order, nor one conveyed in such a [00:05:18] troubling manner. Incredibly, I was [00:05:21] being shown this memo in secret by my [00:05:23] supervisor, who made sure that I [00:05:26] understood that disobedience could cost [00:05:28] me my job. ICE is teaching cadets to [00:05:31] violate the Constitution, [00:05:34] and they were attempting to cloak it in [00:05:36] secrecy by demanding that I lie about [00:05:39] it. [00:05:41] I am here to convey to the public the [00:05:43] danger that is being created at the ICE [00:05:45] Academy. I know from my conversations [00:05:47] with many facility members, many of the [00:05:49] faculty that I am not alone in my fear. [00:05:52] Law enforcement is a deadly serious [00:05:55] business. It is not a place for [00:05:57] shortcuts. Deficient training can and [00:06:00] will get people killed. It can and will [00:06:03] lead to unlawful arrests, violations of [00:06:06] constitutional rights, and a fundamental [00:06:08] loss of public trust in law enforcement. [00:06:11] ICE is lying to Congress and the [00:06:14] American people about the steps it is [00:06:17] taking to ensure its 12,000 new officers [00:06:19] faithfully uphold the Constitution and [00:06:21] can perform their jobs. [00:06:24] I am grateful for the opportunity to [00:06:25] speak to you today and happy to answer [00:06:27] any questions you have now or in the f [00:06:29] future. Thank you for your attention.