N.C. - Mayor condemns ICE raids that reportedly have detained 6 people in Orange Coun
Mayor condemns ICE raids that reportedly have detained 6 people in Orange County
BY TAMMY GRUBB AND COLIN WARREN-HICKS
April 12, 2018 09:27 AM
CARRBORO
Immigration officials picked up two Carrboro residents and at least four others in Orange County this week.
Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle issued a statement Thursday morning confirming the Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and reassuring residents the Carrboro Police Department was not involved.
"As our Police Chief Walter Horton stated last year," she said, " 'Immigration status has never been a concern or priority to the Carrboro Police Department. We are here to serve all community members.'."
On its Facebook page, El Centro Hispano said it has confirmed three ICE raids in Orange County: one in Carrboro, one in Chapel Hill and one in Hillsborough. These raids resulted in six people being arrested and currently detained, the agency said.
"We have received other incident reports, which we are working on verifying and identifying anyone who might need help," the post continued.
The town of Carrboro is working with El Centro Hispano officials and other community partners to contact the family members of those who have been detained and make sure they have legal representation, Lavelle said.
The town also has been in contact with the other governments about what happened, Lavelle said. Nearly 17 percent of Carrboro residents were born outside the United States, according to U.S. Census estimates, and the "Carrboro Board of Aldermen firmly believes that immigrants are an integral part of our community and should be welcomed and supported," she said.
"Finally, on a personal note, I cannot adequately express how frightening this news must be for our neighbors who live in constant fear that these actions may happen on any given day in our town," Lavelle said. "My heart hurts for our community. I look forward to a future when we live in a nation where all people are treated with compassion and respect, regardless of their immigration status."
The N.C. Dream Coalition issued a warning Wednesday about the raids, saying they were targeting Hispanic communities at Collins Crossing in Carrboro, and at mobile home parks on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and the Pinegate and Ephesus Church Road apartment complexes in Chapel Hill.
The group advised "people that they shouldn’t open the door for any officers, they need to ask for search warrants or removal/arrest warrants to be passed to them under their doors and verify information AND signatures on these documents with their information on them."
Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood said he heard about the Chapel Hill raids from an officer. ICE didn't contact them, he said, because the federal agency "is not real happy with us."
ICE spokesman Bryan Cox confirmed that ICE does not always alert local law enforcement before making their own arrests.
"Not necessarily," Cox said. "In jurisdictions that cooperate with ICE we work with local jurisdictions to the extent permissible in accordance with relevant law and policy.
You’ll need to ask local jurisdictions about their policies as I cannot speak for them," Cox added.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office doesn't honor ICE detainers, which are not signed by a judge, and thus are a request and not an order, he said. Immigration enforcement also is not a priority for the Carrboro and Chapel Hill police departments.
“Unless you have an order to commit someone to the jail and hold them, you legally can’t do it,” Blackwood said. “Doing so would place the county and me in jeopardy of violating their civil rights and create a lawsuit, which is not what we want to do.”
If someone arrested on local, state or federal charges is able to pay their bail before ICE shows up, they can go free, he said. That’s rare for suspects facing more serious charges, such as murder, he added.
ICE officials “say it’s problematic for them,” Blackwood said. “Their position then is the sheriff doesn’t want to play, so we’ll just do what we’re going to do and not tell them, so we don’t get a call when they come to the county.”
Ice spokesman Cox said his agency does not conduct random or indiscriminate arrests. “ICE only conducts targeted immigration enforcement in compliance with federal law and agency,” Cox stated.
“ICE makes arrests every day in accordance with its routine, ongoing targeted enforcement,” he said. “ICE does not conduct checkpoints nor sweeps or raids that target aliens indiscriminately.”
However, Cox added, if in the process of making a targeted arrest — of a specific individual at a specific address — ICE officials come into contact with other people living in the country without legal permission “we will arrest them too,” he said. “We are not going to turn a blind eye.”
Cox said ICE employs less than 20,000 employees nationwide and given the generally accepted estimate that there are approximately 11 million people living in the U.S. without legal permission, ICE attempts to maximize its available, "finite" resources.
What's next
El Centro Hispano will host a "know your rights " session during its Faith ID event at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, April 14, at the Carrboro Century Center, 100 N. Greensboro St. Elected officials also will be there to answer questions.
Mayor's statement
It has come to our attention that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have been operating in Orange County over the past two days. We believe they have detained at least two Carrboro residents and at least four other county residents.
First, I want to make clear to the community that the Carrboro Police Department was not involved in these actions. As our Police Chief Walter Horton stated last year, “Immigration status has never been a concern or priority to the Carrboro Police Department. We are here to serve all community members.”
Since learning of ICE’s actions, Town officials have been working with representatives of El Centro Hispano and other community partners to contact the family members of the detainees and to ensure that they have adequate legal representation.
Approximately one in five Carrboro residents were born outside the United States. The Carrboro Board of Aldermen firmly believes that immigrants are an integral part of our community and should be welcomed and supported. For many years, we have advocated for comprehensive, compassionate immigration reform. It is essential that all residents of Carrboro feel safe and secure, regardless of their national origin or immigration status, and that they receive due process and legal representation.
We will continue to cooperate with our colleagues in Orange County, Chapel Hill, and Hillsborough to keep the community informed about this week’s incidents. We also will continue to support the work of our community partners to educate residents about their rights, and to offer information and resources for residents who need assistance.
Finally, on a personal note, I cannot adequately express how frightening this news must be for our neighbors who live in constant fear that these actions may happen on any given day in our town. My heart hurts for our community. I look forward to a future when we live in a nation where all people are treated with compassion and respect, regardless of their immigration status.
— Mayor Lydia E. Lavelle
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