Three U.S. senators have called for an overhaul of federal agents’ use of tear gas and pepper spray, citing a ProPublica investigation that found at least 79 children were left screaming, coughing or hurt by these chemicals during President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

Lawmakers said the findings showed more restrictions are needed to avoid injuring bystanders — including children — with chemical munitions. Such weapons were designed to combat rioters and soldiers, and their compounds are toxic, especially to children, who breathe more rapidly than adults relative to their body weight.

“This reporting makes clear that we need federal legislation to rein in the over-use and misuse of tear gas and chemical agents,” Sen. Cory Booker, a Democrat from New Jersey, said in a statement. “We cannot allow another child to be tear-gassed by federal law enforcement officers.”

ProPublica found that the Department of Homeland Security’s policies on the use of these weapons are less restrictive than those of some local police departments, many of which have been forced to adopt stronger ones following lawsuits or local legislation. There is no uniform standard governing how and when law enforcement departments can use these weapons.

DHS should update its policies based on the best practices of local police departments, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, told ProPublica. In Minneapolis, for instance, police officers can deploy chemical munitions only if the police chief has authorized it.

“This kind of use of force should require approval from someone in a position of authority” and an assessment of the potential “collateral damage to children,” Blumenthal said.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois, echoed this sentiment. “We need a complete overhaul of ICE and Border Patrol to ensure they follow the same rules and safeguards that apply to police departments across the country,” she said in a written statement.

Many of the hurt kids were at home when tear gas drifted in from streets where federal agents had deployed the chemical agent against crowds of protesters. Other children were sitting in their parents’ cars when officers fired pepper spray through the driver’s side windows.

Virtually no research exists on the potential long-term effects on children, but the chemicals are undeniably dangerous. One........

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