DHS Bodycam Footage 'Vanish,' Just Like Accountability
The Intercept, pursuing a FOIA request for bodycam footage related to Kristi Noem's border deployment stunts, received the reply that DHS has no such records. Apparently, ICE agents, mandated to wear body cameras, somehow managed to collectively misplace or simply not activate them across multiple engagements. One might recall similar convenient memory gaps when accountability for actions by state
agents is requested, for instance, during instances of excessive force or questionable detentions. This isn't an isolated IT glitch; this is a feature of opacity, a recurring 'bug' in the system whenever transparency threatens the narrative. It appears basic record-keeping technology fails precisely when public scrutiny is highest. Perhaps the cameras only work when recording happy moments, like
agents enjoying a coffee break, never during, say, the apprehension of migrants or interactions that might raise uncomfortable questions. Convenient, isn't it, how the most crucial evidence simply evaporates?