A federal judge has temporarily blocked the deportation of a Venezuelan man who was shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Austin over the weekend, his attorney said.
Attorney Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said her office filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of her 28-year-old client, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez. The judge ordered Perez to appear at a hearing on Sept. 30.
“That means Wilber cannot be deported in the meantime,” Lincoln-Goldfinch wrote on Facebook. “For now, we have secured a temporary block on his deportation while his case moves forward.”
Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, a Venezuelan national, was shot by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Austin, Texas, over the weekend. (Wilber Garces/Facebook)
Lincoln-Goldfinch said Perez remains in need of medical treatment and that her office would continue working to protect his rights. He is still in “a lot of pain,” she said, and the bullet remains lodged in his body.
Perez was delivering a DoorDash order when he made a U-turn beneath a highway, authorities said. ICE agents then continued pursuing him.
“The truck chased him and sideswiped him again. And the agents came out and shot him in the back of the neck and pulled him out of the car,” Lincoln-Goldfinch said.
Authorities said Perez had a final order of removal. His attorney, however, said the order was issued after an immigration hearing notice was sent to an outdated address, even though Perez had updated his address with the court.
Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza sent a letter Tuesday to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and ICE Director David Venturella, asking that Garces Perez be permitted to remain in the United States while the shooting is investigated.
Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, joined more than 100 other members of Congress in signing a separate letter to Mullin and Venturella. The lawmakers urged officials to release Perez from ICE detention so he can obtain medical care.
They also called on state officials and law enforcement agencies to preserve all evidence connected to the shooting.
“Mr. Garces Perez is a key witness to this shooting, and given ICE’s history of obscuring the facts in similar investigations, he must not be removed,” the letter stated.
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People protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on Sept. 20, 2026, in Austin, Texas. A federal ICE officer shot and wounded a person earlier in North Austin. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
The ICE officer who shot Perez recently joined the agency but has years of law enforcement experience, including work with the U.S. Border Patrol, sources told Fox News.
Multiple federal law enforcement sources told Fox News that the unidentified officer was not wearing a body camera during the shooting. ICE is expected to have cameras on all officers by the end of the month.
Records show the officer completed ICE’s 256-hour Deportation Officer Training Program in August 2025, followed by additional operational and legal instruction during 2026.
Training logs show the officer scored 99.2% on a pistol qualification and completed instruction on use-of-force situations and less-lethal weapons, including Tasers, OC spray and batons.
The training also covered field operations and practical exercises involving the full custody process, as well as warrantless arrests, Title 19 authority, escort and removal procedures, expedited removal and custody protocols.
Protesters confront police officers (not pictured) after city officials said that a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot a person earlier in the day in Austin, Texas, U.S. September 20, 2026. REUTERS/Nuri Vallbona (Nuri Vallbona/Reuters)
News Media has contacted ICE and the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
In the wake of the shooting, multiple Democrats have criticized ICE, calling it a “rogue” agency that was “terrorizing our cities and threatening the safety of our residents.”
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, DHS released a list of some illegal immigrants in Texas who have been arrested for various crimes, including supporting an Islamic State-inspired mass shooting on election day in 2024 and two Mexican citizens wanted for multiple murders in their native country.
The list also includes child sex offenders, drug dealers, and one Mexican man arrested after posting a TikTok video in 2025 in Spanish soliciting the murder of ICE agents and offering a $10,000 reward.