Former acting ICE director John Sandweg calls for review of traffic stops by the agency

John Sandweg, a former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, urged federal immigration enforcement officials to pause or take a new look at the agency’s use of traffic-related vehicular stops, saying “it is absolutely time that we take a hard look, if not a moratorium on vehicular stops,” until there is more clarity on how and when they should be conducted.

Sandweg made the remarks Tuesday in comments reported by The Hill, addressing ICE’s practice of conducting traffic stops on a temporary basis. He tied his call for a pause to what he described as the need for a careful review of the policy and its consequences, rather than continuing the practice without additional scrutiny.

ICE’s traffic-stop authority has drawn attention in enforcement discussions because it can place immigration officers in the course of routine roadway encounters, which raise questions about consent, the scope of investigations that follow a stop, and the length and conditions under which a stop can affect a driver’s rights.

Sandweg’s comments reflect a recurring debate in federal enforcement policy: whether agencies should rely on traffic stops to identify suspected violations and pursue related enforcement actions, or whether the practice should be constrained while leaders assess legal authority, operational guidance, and accountability mechanisms for officers in the field.

The remarks also underline the practical operational stakes for ICE and other law enforcement components involved in encounters that begin as traffic enforcement. A change in how the agency uses vehicular stops could affect how cases are initiated, how resources are allocated during routine road policing, and how frequently officers transfer from traffic-related contacts into immigration enforcement processes.

Sandweg’s call for a potential moratorium was framed as a temporary measure pending a wider review, according to the reported description. The Hill’s account did not provide additional specifics in the excerpt about what standards should replace the current approach, who would lead the review, or the timeframe for completing it.

For now, Sandweg’s remarks appear aimed at pushing ICE leadership to reassess the practice, rather than announcing a new policy on their own. Any formal change would likely require action through ICE leadership and the administration’s enforcement policy process, including any updates to internal guidance for officers and how enforcement decisions are documented.