With a Donald Trump presidency on the horizon, some of his campaign promises are sinking in with undocumented immigrants nationwide—including the estimated 40,000 in Santa Barbara County.
In an interview on 60 Minutes, Trump promised a crackdown on “criminal aliens” and said he plans to deport 2 million to 3 million people who are in the United States illegally. But local law enforcement teams, including the Lompoc Police Department and Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, want residents to know they won’t become an instrument for non-criminal deportation cases.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown said in an emailed statement to the Sun that the Sheriff’s Office doesn’t participate in deportation investigations or enforcement of individuals who aren’t violating criminal statutes.
“The immigrant community shouldn’t think law enforcement is going to deport them if they come to us and report a crime or are the victim of a crime,” Brown wrote. “However, the Sheriff’s Office will continue to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement when it comes to determining the status of criminal aliens.”
In a press release from the Lompoc Police Department, Sgt. Kevin Martin wrote that Police Chief Pat Walsh has received concerns regarding immigration enforcement, and clarified that the department has no plans to change its policy on immigration.
The release said that in California, local law enforcement agencies don’t have the authority to enforce immigration laws—that’s the federal government’s job, through Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“The Lompoc Police Department does not have the authority, intention, or the resources to enforce immigration laws,” Walsh wrote in the release. “Lompoc police understand they serve all of our community, regardless of immigration status. Lompoc police will continue to investigate crimes regardless of immigration status of those involved, and want everyone in the community to know the Lompoc Police Department is here to serve them.”
This article appears in Nov 24 – Dec 1, 2016.
