ICE Officers Make Arrests Regardless of California State Sanctuary Laws

United States Immigration officers had arrested two individuals at a courthouse in Northern California, as reprted by the Los Angeles Times.

The arrest included a man who was detained in a hallway while he was walking towards his hearing. This move violates a state law that requires a judicial warrant before an immigrant can be arrested inside the facility.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents conducted the operation on Tuesday at the Sonoma County Superior Court. According to some court officials, the arrest demoralizes local authority and frightens immigrants who entered the country illegally to participate in the United States' justice system.

A Statement by ICE About Federal Law Enforcement

According to ICE, the law of California does not overtake the federal law. Also, it claims that state law does not have the authority to govern federal officers during the accomplishment of their duties. It means that the state law does not have the power to prevent federal officers from enacting the laws passed by Congress. These laws include the authority to perform administrative arrests of illegal immigrants residing in the United States.

According to David Jennings, the field office director of ICE in San Francisco, ICE agents who are enforcing laws on immigration are not to be restricted by sanctuary laws.

California's Anti-Immigration Arrest Law

California is one of the many states that implement a rule regarding the arrests of immigration officers inside courthouses. In 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law that prevents immigration officers from arresting while in courthouses without the issuance of a warrant by a judge.

The arrest made at the Sonoma County happened after the United States Customs and Border Protection officials had announced that the agency will be participating in the increased immigration enforcement by ICE. These efforts by ICE will be implemented all over the country with powers surpassing laws implemented by each state.

Comments About the Arrest

Jill Ravitch, a Sonoma County District lawyer, Kathleen Pozzi, a public defender and attorney, and Chesa Boudin of the San Francisco District had viewed the arrest as a threat to the safety of the public. Bruce Goldstein, a Sonoma County Counsel commented that the act of the ICE agents was lawless due to their failure to first present a warrant of arrest.

The Arrested Men

According to ICE, both men were taken by the immigration agents multiple times from 2004 until 2010. Also, the two men had been deported to Mexico multiple times in the past.

In one of the arrests, an investigator and a public defender from Sonoma County had asked questions to the ICE agent who was leading a 37-year-old man to an unmarked law enforcement car, he did not reply. The agent was seen not wearing a uniform. The arrested man was detained on the second floor of the hallway of the courthouse before he was able to present himself at his court hearing. The man was a carpenter who was trying to resolve his case on Tuesday. He was arrested for the suspicion of domestic violence and drunk driving.