When the Trump Era Ends, Justice Must Follow
Wanderstayfinder.com – Eventually, the political landscape will shift. The movement that has dominated American politics for years will lose its grip, and new possibilities will emerge. At that moment, voices will rise suggesting we simply move forward. They will argue that pursuing those who enabled Trump’s agenda is nothing more than petty revenge. Some will claim that investigations and trials are pointless exercises. Others will warn against changing laws to permit prosecutions, insisting that focusing too heavily on recent history will only deepen divisions and prevent progress.
This narrative has appeared before. It echoed after the Watergate scandal. It resounded following the Civil War. Each time, it proved misguided. When history repeats itself after Trump’s departure, this same argument will be delivered with solemn conviction and self-satisfaction. Yet it will remain fundamentally incorrect.
The Case for Retroactive Accountability
When MAGA finally exits power, every individual connected to Immigration and Customs Enforcement must face consequences. This includes the masked officers patrolling streets, the contractors manning detention facilities, and the legal minds in Washington crafting justifications for their actions. Their protection from criminal charges and civil litigation must be eliminated entirely. Liability should apply retroactively. These individuals must be investigated, brought to trial, fined, penalized, and socially marginalized.
Abolishing ICE alone proves insufficient. Mere reform represents a betrayal of democratic principles. The agency must be dismantled completely, and those responsible for its operations must be removed from public service permanently.
Recent Tragedies Demand Action
A series of heartbreaking deaths illustrates why accountability matters. Last Tuesday, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old business owner and father of three, was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Houston. He was driving to work when the incident occurred. Salgado had built a successful life in Texas after arriving from Mexico at seventeen years old, three and a half decades ago. Three coworkers riding with him survived the shooting but were subsequently taken into ICE custody. Investigators later discovered the agents had been searching for someone entirely different.
Before Salgado’s body was even cold, ICE killed again.
Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a twenty-five-year-old Biddeford, Maine resident born in Colombia, died in a separate incident. His father confirmed he possessed a work permit, common among asylum seekers. Durán maintained two positions—delivering food and working as a veterinary office custodian—to provide for his wife and three-year-old daughter. Witnesses reported that his young daughter watched ICE agents strike her father’s vehicle, approach the driver’s side window, and shoot him. The tragedy unfolded around seven in the morning while the child remained in her Bluey pajamas.
Maine Senator Angus King learned from DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullen that ICE was pursuing another individual when they killed Durán as well. Following these deaths, ICE claimed Salgado attempted to run down agents with his car, a version contradicted by eyewitnesses. This mirrors exactly what ICE stated about Renee Good, a Minneapolis mother of three killed earlier this year. Video evidence swiftly debunked the official account of Good’s death, suggesting similar skepticism warranted regarding Salgado’s case.
A Pattern of Violence
The evidence points toward a troubling pattern. ICE appears to function as an organization of reckless, trigger-happy individuals executing the president’s mass deportation and ethnic cleansing policies. They terrorize communities, target marginalized populations based on race, and frequently escalate encounters into fatal confrontations.
We have witnessed this cycle before. The cold-blooded killings of Salgado and Durán followed months after ICE murdered two American citizens in Minneapolis—Renee Good and Alex Pretti, a Veterans Affairs hospital nurse. These deaths energized civilian resistance in Minneapolis and triggered nationwide protests against ICE’s operations. The negative publicity clearly affected the administration. Greg Bovino, the border patrol commander known for his distinctive attire, lost his position as a concession to public opinion. Kristi Noem, who led the Homeland Security department during this period, also departed shortly afterward.
These events demonstrate that accountability cannot wait. When political power shifts, we must ensure that those who caused harm face justice—not through empty gestures, but through meaningful consequences that honor the victims and protect democratic values for future generations.
