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A former instructor at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement warned Congress on Monday that the agency’s rapid expansion under President Donald Trump is sending new officers into the field without adequate training to lawfully carry out immigration enforcement.
“New cadets are graduating from the Academy, despite widespread concerns among training staff that even in the final days of training, the cadets cannot demonstrate a solid grasp of the tactics or the law required to perform their jobs,” said Ryan Schwank, a former ICE use-of-force instructor, during a hearing organized by congressional Democrats.
“Without reform, ICE will graduate thousands of new officers who do not know their constitutional duty, do not know the limits of their authority and who do not have the training to recognize an unlawful order,” Schwank added. “That should scare everyone.”
Whistleblower resignation and protest
Schwank, an attorney and career ICE employee, resigned from the agency on Feb. 13, according to congressional aides. A spokesperson for Whistleblower Aid, which represents him, said Schwank quit in protest of what he viewed as dangerous changes to training standards.
His testimony marks one of the first public rebukes of ICE from an official who served during Trump’s second term.
The hearing was convened by Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Rep. Robert Garcia, as Democrats push for tighter oversight of immigration enforcement amid reports of aggressive tactics and fatal encounters involving federal officers.
Training sharply reduced, documents show
Internal ICE documents shared with Congress by Schwank and a second whistleblower appear to show sweeping reductions in training.
A comparison of syllabi shows that between July 2025 and February 2026, the ICE Basic Immigration Enforcement Training Program was shortened from 72 days to 42 days. Several courses tied to use of force were removed entirely.
A January 2026 daily training schedule indicates some recruits are receiving roughly half the instructional hours of previous classes, according to an analysis by Democratic staff on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. Required exams were also reduced, with evaluations on firearms judgment, encounters-to-detention procedures and other use-of-force protocols eliminated.
“I am duty bound to tell you the ICE Basic Immigration Enforcement Training Program is now deficient, defective and broken,” Schwank told lawmakers.
DHS disputes allegations
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, denied that training requirements had been cut.
“DHS has streamlined training to cut redundancy and incorporate technology advancements, without sacrificing basic subject matter content,” the department said in a statement. “No subject matter has been cut.”
But Schwank disputed that claim during his testimony, alleging officials were misrepresenting the scope of changes.
“What was taken out was 16 hours of firearms training,” he said. “What was taken out were classes on how the Constitution works — including instruction on the rights of protesters.”
Broader legal and policy concerns
Earlier this year, Schwank filed an anonymous whistleblower complaint alleging that ICE leadership has encouraged unconstitutional enforcement tactics. Among the disclosures was a directive signed by Acting ICE Director Todd Lyonsreversing longstanding rules that barred officers from entering homes without judicial warrants.
DHS General Counsel Jimmy Percival has defended the policy, arguing that administrative warrants signed by ICE officials are sufficient when targeting individuals with final removal orders.
But former DHS General Counsel Stevan Bunnell, who also testified Monday, said the Supreme Court has rejected that view.
“The police can’t sign their own warrants,” Bunnell wrote in prepared remarks.
Deportation pressure intensifies
ICE expects roughly 4,000 recruits to graduate by the end of September, with plans to hire 10,000 new officers using funding from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Internal documents indicate more than 3,000 new officers could enter the field by June alone.
The administration has pressed ICE to sharply increase arrests and deportations. White House officials have publicly urged agents to carry out up to 3,000 arrests per day.
In Trump’s first year back in office, ICE made nearly 400,000 arrests — about 1,000 per day — according to DHS data. Less than 14% of those arrested had violent criminal records, while roughly 40% had no criminal record beyond civil immigration violations.
Blumenthal praised Schwank’s testimony, calling it “a moral imperative.”
“To anyone else who is repulsed by what you’re seeing or what authorities are asking you to do,” Blumenthal said, “please know that you can make a real difference by coming forward.”
