by RUBEN CASTANEDA | BALTIMORE SUNFri, April 10, 2026 at 8:38 AMNEW YORK, NY - MARCH 23: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol John F. Kennedy International Airport on March 23, 2026 in New York City. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown. U.S. President Donald Trump said ICE agents will be deployed to U.S. airports on Monday, with border czar Tom Homan in charge of the effort. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)MARYLAND (WBFF) — Federal immigration agents in Maryland used the state’s driver’s license database — without citing a traffic violation or outstanding warrant — to detain a driver in Howard County, a federal affidavit shows, raising legal and policy questions about how the information is used in immigration enforcement.As part of “Operation Take Back America,” Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers ran license plate checks in January on about 10 vehicles using law enforcement databases that include driver’s license and registration information, the FBI affidavit states.Nine of those checks did not lead to enforcement action. The tenth involved Santos Alvarenga-Rodriguez, 47, whom ICE agents questioned and detained after agents flagged restrictions on his Maryland driver’s license.The Rodriguez case is drawing scrutiny because nearly a quarter-million Maryland drivers carry similar license restrictions — an “A” designation that means the license can’t be used to purchase a firearm, or a “U” designation, which means it can’t be used for federal purposes, like boarding an airplane. People in Maryland who can’t prove lawful residency could have such restrictions on their licenses, as could many others. For example, an “A” restriction could indicate the driver has a felony conviction and isn’t allowed to purchase a firearm.Read the full story on the Baltimore Sun.