Published September 28, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET · Updated September 29, 2026 at 8:07 PM ET
5 independent outlets are covering this story, first reported here by Just the News. Verification: Confirmed (how we verify). Every headline links to the original reporting.
A Venezuelan man was shot by an ICE agent in Texas. He now faces charges of assaulting an officer.
Patriot Watch first flagged this story 2 d ago, when Just the News reported it. Coverage has since grown to 5 independent outlets, including 2 wire/mainstream feeds. The most recent report came 1 d ago from The Guardian.
⚖ The Constitutional Angle
Torres v. Madrid holds that force applied with intent to restrain is a seizure even if the person is not subdued, so a shooting can be a seizure without submission. Graham v. Connor makes objective reasonableness the test for force claims. Barnes v. Felix requires weighing all circumstances leading up to the force, not just the moment of threat. Whether this shooting was lawful turns on that totality.
Roxanne Torres v. Janice Madrid and Richard Williamson 592 U.S. 306 (2021)
Vote: 5-3 (Barrett took no part)
Defined what counts as a 'seizure' of a person by force. The application of physical force to the body of a person with intent to restrain is a seizure, even if the force does not succeed in subduing the person — i.e., even if the person keeps moving and escapes. Key rule: 'The application of physical force to the body of a person with intent to restrain is a seizure even if the person does not submit and is not subdued.' Officers who shot and struck Roxanne Torres, who then drove away, had 'seized' her for the moment the bullets struck, so her excessive-force claim could proceed.
Dethorne Graham v. M. S. Connor 490 U.S. 386 (1989)
Vote: 9-0 (unanimous in the judgment; Blackmun, Brennan, and Marshall concurred in part and in…
Established the governing standard for all police use-of-force claims: 'objective reasonableness' under the Fourth Amendment. All claims that law-enforcement officers used excessive force in the course of an arrest, investigatory stop, or other 'seizure' of a free citizen are analyzed under the Fourth Amendment's objective-reasonableness standard, not under substantive due process.
Janice Hughes Barnes, individually and as representative of the Estate of Ashtian Barnes, Deceased v. Roberto Felix, Jr. 605 U.S. 73 (2025)
Vote: 9-0 (unanimous)
Adopted the totality-of-the-circumstances rule for excessive-force analysis and rejected the 'moment-of-threat' doctrine. A court assessing whether an officer's use of force was objectively reasonable under Graham v. Connor must consider all the relevant circumstances, including the events leading up to the use of force — not just the narrow instant when the officer perceived a threat.
Precedent facts from the PW Law Library — primary-source verified & independently audited
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