A small group gathered Dec. 19 to protest outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Westerville, capping a week in which many in the community saw increased activity from the agency in Columbus.
ICE has long had a presence in central Ohio, but actions this week in Columbus prompted responses from city officials, community leaders and national politicians.
Here’s what we know:
How many people is ICE arresting in Columbus?
It is unclear exactly how many operations ICE has conducted in recent days and how many people have been detained.
Records from the Butler County jail, one of a handful of Ohio jails housing ICE detainees, show there were 26 people booked into the facility on Dec. 18 with no other charge listed other than “Hold for ICE.” Another 35 people were booked in on Dec. 17. The detainees range in age from 20 to 51 and include four women and 57 men.
The jail’s publicly visible information does not identify where the detainees are from, either in Ohio or their country of origin, or where they were arrested. Of the six ICE detention facilities in Ohio, the Butler County jail is closest geographically to Columbus.
Quiet protest at ICE office in freezing snow
About two dozen people gathered in freezing temperatures next to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Westerville for a regularly scheduled protest Dec. 19.
ICE arrests in the Columbus area have already been trending upward this year compared to 2024 under the second Trump administration. The gathering came a few days after local officials described increased ICE activity in the Columbus area.
At the protest, people mostly stood in a single-file line facing the street, holding signs that said “stop the cruelty.” People occasionally cheered as cars passing by honked in support, but there was no speaker or music.
“I’m worried about our country — the law is just not being followed,” said Sue Leatherman, who was coming to the protest for the second time. “I’m frightened for people I know.”
Mixed reaction from Congressional officials
U.S. Congresswoman Joyce Beatty, a Democrat representing part of Columbus, told The Dispatch that city leaders are addressing the increased ICE activity and that she wants constituents to know “we are supporting them.”
“We would like them to leave immediately,” Beatty said.
She added that “Columbus has not had a problem that ICE can solve.”
A Dec. 18 video featuring Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther and Police Chief Elaine Bryant, emphasizing the city’s longstanding policy that it would not cooperate with ICE on immigration offenses, was shared by the right-wing account “Libs of TikTok.”
U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno responded to the video Libs of TikTok reposted on X, saying that entering the U.S. unlawfully or overstaying a visa is a “federal crime.” He added that Ginther and Bryant “should be aware that impeding federal law enforcement efforts is also a crime.”
Overstaying a visa is not a federal crime, but a civil offense, according to the American Immigration Council. But entering the U.S. “without proper inspection at a port of entry” is a federal misdemeanor.
‘Call a kidnapping a kidnapping’: Many bystanders filming, posting
Many bystanders around Columbus have filmed ICE arrests and posted the videos to social media to warn others. One woman, Alison Claybon, sent the videos to the Dispatch and to her state representative.
Claybon has lived in the Columbus area since 2013. She said she got a call from a friend at about 3 p.m. Dec. 18 that ICE was arresting two men outside the furniture stores on Britton Parkway near the Mall at Tuttle Crossing, just south of Dublin.
“I immediately jumped in the truck and went over there because I’m not going to stand by while people are being kidnapped in broad daylight,” Claybon said.
In footage provided to the Dispatch, several men in plain clothes with ski masks and tactical vests surrounded a man, searching him. One wore a black vest that read “ICE police.”
Claybon asked the masked men who they were and where they were taking the man. They did not answer most of her questions, but one of them pointed to the man being searched and said, “he’s here illegally,” the footage shows.
Claybon yelled to the man in Spanish, asking for his name and if he had any numbers she should call.
She stayed at the scene for several minutes, filming and heckling the apparent ICE agents, who loaded the man Claybon spoke to and a second man into vehicles. She swore at the officials, calling them fascists and saying they were kidnapping people.
Claybon said she did not regret swearing at them, and she said what she saw could only be described as kidnapping, even though it was likely carried out by officials.
She said anyone could order similar police vests or even red and blue vehicle lights on Amazon, and the officials did not seem professional and did not show any identification.
“I don’t have any shame for my behavior. I think they should be ashamed of themselves,” Claybon said. “Somebody has to stand up to this and call a kidnapping a kidnapping.”
FOP president says officers have duty to assist ICE in certain situations
Brian Steel, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Capital City Lodge #9, emphasized that Columbus police do not assist in federal immigration enforcement. But he did say that if ICE agents need assistance with someone who is potentially violent, sworn officers have a duty to assist the agents.
Some examples Steel included are if the suspect is armed, or they try fleeing from agents either on foot or in a vehicle.
“This is nothing new,” said Steel.
In an email sent to Columbus police leadership minutes before a Dec. 18 press conference that Steel shared with The Dispatch, Chief Elaine Bryant said that the police division “does not assist in detaining individuals based solely on immigration status.”
“Our responsibility in these situations is to maintain public order and keep the peace, while ensuring the safety of all involved — including the public and our officers,” Bryant wrote. “If you encounter federal agents conducting operations, you are expected to remain professional, focused, and aware of your surroundings. Officer safety must remain your top priority.”
Bryant also wrote that officers have a “duty to intervene” if they witness any conduct or actions from agents that places anyone at risk. If any sworn or civilian employee gets a request to assist in any federal operations, they are required to notify either the Deputy Chief or an Assistant Chief, according to the email.
“I expect all of you will continue to conduct yourself in a manner that aligns with our values, training, and policies. You have consistently demonstrated professionalism in challenging and sensitive situations, and I am confident you will continue to do so,” said Bryant.
Anna Lynn Winfrey covers the northwestern suburbs for the Columbus Dispatch. She can be reached at awinfrey@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: ICE activity continues in Columbus. Community members, leaders respond
Reporting by Anna Lynn Winfrey, Bailey Gallion, Bethany Bruner and Amani Bayo, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
