\n<\/p>\n
More than two<\/span> dozen Immigration and Customs Enforcement<\/a> vehicles on the ground in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area<\/a> \u201ccurrently lack the necessary emergency lights and sirens\u201d required to be \u201ccompliant with law enforcement requirements,\u201d according to a contract justification published<\/a> in a federal register on Tuesday.<\/p>\n The document justifies ICE paying Whelen Engineering Company, a Connecticut-based firm specializing in \u201cemergency warning and lighting technology,\u201d $47,330.49<\/a> for 31 \u201cATLAS1\u201d kits\u2014seemingly a typo of ATLAS, the name of the product<\/a> sold by Whelen\u2014which the company\u2019s website describes as an \u201cAdaptable Travel Light and Siren Kit.\u201d The document explains that the ATLAS kits would \u201callow vehicles to be immediately operational and compliant with law enforcement requirements to support the current surge operation\u201d out of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)\u2019s St. Paul office, which conducts<\/a> operations in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota.<\/p>\n \u201cThese vehicles were deployed prior to being permanently retrofitted and currently lack the necessary emergency lights and sirens required for operational use,\u201d the document says.<\/p>\n The document also says that because of the \u201cthe time-sensitive nature of the mission\u201d that HSI agents are conducting, having to wait for \u201cpermanent retrofitting\u201d of the agency\u2019s vehicles with lights and sirens \u201cwould negatively impact operational readiness, law enforcement officer safety, and public safety.\u201d<\/p>\n HSI\u2019s most recent public handbook for agents conducting \u201cemergency driving\u201d\u2014defined as driving during \u201cofficial duties,\u201d like low- or high-risk pursuits, that may require breaking speed limits or violating certain traffic laws\u2014appears to have been published in 2012<\/a>. It says that any HSI vehicles without lights and sirens \u201cmay not be used\u201d in emergency driving, unless the officer \u201cis conducting surveillance or is responding to an event that may adversely impact or threaten life, health, or property or requires an immediate law enforcement response.\u201d<\/p>\n The handbook adds that if an HSI officer is emergency driving but their vehicle does not have lights or sirens, they \u201cmust terminate\u201d their participation in a law enforcement operation, and an officer from another law enforcement agency that does have lights and sirens should take over. This HSI officer \u201dmay continue to assist in a backup role, if necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n The handbook does not specify the exact number or location of lights that have to be on an emergency vehicle, but it says that officers are responsible for reviewing any state statutes for emergency lights and sirens where they operate. Minnesota state law requires<\/a> law enforcement and emergency drivers to \u201csound an audible signal by siren\u201d and have at least one red light on the front of the vehicle, among other stipulations.<\/p>\n When reached for comment, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told WIRED that ICE vehicles \u201cmeet federal regulations for law enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDHS is not going to confirm our vehicles and put an even larger target on our officers\u2019 backs,\u201d McLaughlin said. She also claimed that officers \u201cclearly identify themselves as law enforcement while wearing masks to protect themselves from being targeted by highly sophisticated gangs.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Whelen\u2019s website<\/a>, the ATLAS kit includes several items that are also sold separately by the company, including lightheads<\/a> and lightbars<\/a>, as well as a siren amplifier<\/a> and speaker<\/a>. The kit comes in a portable case resembling a wheeled suitcase, and it includes a small device with a microphone and buttons for controlling the other items in the kit. Whelen describes ATLAS as being \u201cdesigned for quick installation\u201d on any vehicle, regardless of make or model, and ideal for \u201con-the-go law enforcement.\u201d<\/p>\n The listing comes six days after ICE officer Jonathan Ross<\/a> fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in her car in Minneapolis, sparking massive protests and an influx of right-wing influencers<\/a> trying to capitalize on the chaos. After DHS secretary Kristi Noem announced<\/a> that hundreds of additional ICE officers would join the 2,000 already in the Minneapolis area, the state of Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul filed a federal lawsuit<\/a> against DHS and its top officials, asking the judge to halt the federal immigration enforcement operation underway in the state.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n