Recent ICE raids and continued protests across the Golden State led Tulare Police Department to release a statement regarding its policies related to undocumented residents.
ICE, which stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has sent agents into communities across the state in the last few weeks. Most recently large raids were conducted in Northern and Southern California.
The July 10 raid at Glass House Farms in Camarillo and Carpinteria has been one of the largest immigration raids since President Donald Trump was inaugurated. Federal authorities said hundreds were detained at the cannabis farm sites in Southern California.
On Thursday, a Sacramento raid resulted it the detainment of at least 10 people at a Home Depot, according to a CalMatters report.
As immigration enforcement ramps up, many Tulare County residents remain on edge as Homeland Security agents continue to detain people.
Tulare Police Department officials said that officers are not aware of any ICE activity that is occurring or has occurred in the city. However, police officials added that federal authorities “seldom make the Tulare Police Department aware of their presence in our community.”
In a press release issued this week, department officials reaffirmed that they don’t participate in immigration enforcement.
“Immigration enforcement is solely the responsibility of federal law enforcement agencies, not the Tulare Police Department,” Lt. Tony Espinosa stated in a press release.
In 2017, California passed Senate Bill 54 which restricts local governments from participating in federal immigration enforcement.
Because of that law, the department does not participate in actions that would “contribute to mass deportations,” Espinosa said. Additionally the department doesn’t hold people for immigration agents, it doesn’t share information without consent, and it doesn’t detain people for immigration enforcement purposes.
Department officials went on to condone residents’ constitutional right to peaceful protest, but condemned violence and property destruction.
“We care about the well-being of all Tulare residents, and will respond to all calls for help, regardless of a person’s immigration status,” Espinosa said. “The Tulare Police Department remains focused on public safety, and the city’s mission ‘To promote a quality of life in our community and making Tulare the most desirable community in which to live, learn, play, work, worship and prosper.'”
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Tulare Police Department responds to statewide immigration enforcement activity
Reporting by Sheyanne N Romero, Visalia Times-Delta / Visalia Times-Delta
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
