By MES Dispatch staff
The Briefing
- • An artificial intelligence screening error at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement misclassified some applicants as having law enforcement experience, routing them into a shorter training program.
- • The tool flagged resumes containing the word “officer” — such as “compliance officer” — as prior law enforcement experience, sources said.
- • As a result, some recruits who lacked required law enforcement background were placed into four-week online training instead of longer FLETC instruction.
- • ICE identified the error in mid-fall, began manual resume reviews and is recalling affected recruits for proper training.
WASHINGTON — An artificial intelligence tool used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement incorrectly classified some job applicants as having law enforcement experience, resulting in recruits being routed into a shortened training program, law enforcement sources told news outlets.
The AI screening error occurred as ICE was processing applications during a recruitment surge aimed at adding thousands of officers to its ranks. The tool was intended to identify applicants with prior law enforcement backgrounds for placement in the agency’s four-week online Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) program, sources said.
Officials said the system mistakenly flagged any resume that included the word “officer” — including terms like “compliance officer” or statements expressing an aspiration to join the agency — as indicative of prior law enforcement experience. Those applicants were then routed into the shorter online training track rather than the full eight-week in-person course at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia that non-LEO candidates are typically required to complete.
It remains unclear how many recruits were affected or how many were deployed to field offices before the error was discovered. ICE officials identified the issue in mid-autumn, more than a month into the expedited hiring process, and have since implemented manual resume reviews and recalled impacted recruits for proper training, sources said.
ICE did not immediately comment publicly on the screening issue. The error highlights challenges agencies face when relying on automated systems in high-volume recruitment efforts, particularly for roles that require specialized training and operational readiness.