There are increasing reports of ICE agents going door to door looking for people. That makes it important to understand your constitutional rights and what you can and cannot do if you hear, “Knock, knock. It’s ICE. Open up.” As a lawyer with more than three decades of experience, here’s what you need to know.
Start with this. When ICE knocks, the tools being used are speed and pressure. Your job is to slow everything down. You have rights before the door ever opens. Calm is not weakness. Calm is control.
The most important thing to know is that you do not have to open the door. You can speak through it. You can ask why they are there. You can ask for an interpreter. You have the right to understand what is happening before anything moves forward. You do not need to explain yourself. You do not need to answer questions.
Take out your phone and start recording. Audio is good. Video is better.
Be firm and polite. Do not escalate the situation. Words and actions matter.
If ICE agents ask or demand to enter your home, you have the right to see a judicial warrant issued by a court and signed by a judge or magistrate. Not an ICE form. Not an administrative document. A judicial warrant. You can ask to see it through a window or have it slid under the door. If they do not have one, you can refuse entry. An ICE administrative warrant does not authorize entry into your home without consent. That distinction matters.
Do not engage in conversation. Do not answer questions. Simply repeat this from the other side of the door: