Ryan Schwenk

But that idea that they are holding up a standard is so much more powerful than we realize because it's the thing that convinces them to be lawful.

That Jiminy Cricket voice in the back of their heads that says, hey, this isn't what an American police officer does.

It's the thing that is in their head at that moment that they act.

In lots of ways, Ryan's unusual.

But in one important way, he's not.

He sounds just as alarmed about ICE as other people inside the government have talked to.

The Department of Homeland Security plans to train about 3,000 new ICE officers at the academy this year.

I think I've kind of walked into a bear trap here.

Thank you, Senator.

Thank you, Senator Blumenthal, Representative Garcia, members of the committee.

My name is Ryan Schwenk.

I swore an oath to uphold the Constitution when I joined ICE on August 1st, 2021, as an assistant chief counsel.

I followed that oath for four and a half years, working side by side with ICE officers.

And I followed it when I resigned on February 13th, 2026, a little over a week ago, so that I could speak to you today.

I am here because I am duty bound to report the legally required training program at the ICE Academy is deficient, defective, and broken.

Five months ago, I was asked to teach the law to new cadets at the ICE Academy in Glencoe, Georgia, where ICE is training its new inexperienced recruits.

I volunteered, those without law enforcement training, I volunteered to take on this assignment based on my experience in law enforcement oversight, including at the state and local level prior to my work with ICE.

On my first day, I received secretive orders to teach new cadets to violate the Constitution by entering homes without a judicial warrant.

For the last five months, I watched ICE dismantle the training program, cutting 240 hours

of vital classes from a 584-hour program.