ICE activity reported in county
As protests spread nationwide against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdowns, reports of ICE detainments of people in Yamhill County were made this week on social media and to the News-Register.
The Newberg-Dundee Police Department confirmed Thursday afternoon that it was told that morning about ICE operations to occur in the city.
“We were notified by Immigration and Customs Enforcement early this morning that they would be in the City of Newberg,” Captain Ryan Simmons told Newsberg media outlet. “ICE notifying us that they would be in our city is customary between law enforcement agencies for the safety of police and the public. We did not assist in their operation in any way at all.”
The Newberg Dundee School District released a statement Thursday regarding “ICE activity in our community over the night and throughout today,” following reports of a detainment near the district’s migrant preschool program.
“Our leadership team worked closely with school principals to ensure a safe and secure last day of school,” Superintendent Dave Parker said in the message sent to parents. “At this time, we have not had any disruptions to our schools or offices, and we ended our last day of school safely.”
Parker reiterated district policies that were communicated in January, including that they release student information only when presented with a valid judicial subpoena or court order, or when disclosure falls under the board-approved Directory Information policy, “what may be shared is highly limited.”
Miriam Vargas Corona, executive director of UNIDOS Bridging Community, told the News-Register she was aware of one ICE detention in McMinnville in April, but didn’t know any further details. She said there was one detention last week elsewhere in the county, and referred to Woodburn-based immigrant justice nonprofit Oregon for All for more details. The N-R had not received them as of press time.
On Thursday afternoon, a flurry of posts online and to the News-Register mentioned an ICE raid on local vineyard workers. County Commissioner Bubba King told the N-R there was “heavy ICE activity in Newberg today,” also noting the detainment of vineyards workers.
However, local arrests by ICE agents are difficult to confirm. Both Yamhill County Sheriff Sam Elliott and McMinnville Police Chief Cord Wood told the News-Register that neither agency has been contacted by ICE or notified of any such operations.
“There have been the occasional rumors regarding ICE being in the community, but I do not know of a confirmed instance of an ICE detainment,” Wood said on Wednesday. “If it’s happened, it hasn’t involved or been reported to MPD.”
Elliott said Wednesday he received an inquiry from The Oregonian about “a ‘tip’ that ICE was active in McMinnville. I told them I was not aware of any ICE activity in Yamhill County, and I have not been notified of any ICE operations in Yamhill County.”
Comments
fiddler
This is what the voters for Trump wanted. They can work in the vineyards and the fields. Sign 'em up!
tagup
Seems unlikely that criminal gang members & drug dealers ( that Trump claimed were the priority) are working in the fields. ICE policy is now just a numbers game that will put a lot of companies out of business.
Bigfootlives
ICE is here, that’s it, burn the town down so the democrats can rule over the ashes.
tagup
Mass deportation is a poorly thought out strategy that trump is already second guessing.
Otis
A guy they grabbed owns his own vineyard management company and has been here 40 years. Super active in his church. Not a criminal at all.
Robin
Somehow the previous administrations were able to deport thousands without separating families and successfully focus on sending violent criminals, all while still following the Constitutions due proces.
Tom
I have friends from Argentina and Mexico they didn't waste any time going through legal channels to become dual American citizens. One has his own construction business and one who is a pilot.They have been here for less time than Mr. Sotelo the vineyard manager. I commend Mr. Sotelo for for his successful business and that he is active in the church. We need people like that, there is a niche to fill and a demand for good people that are willing to work on the farms. My question is, what took him so long to start his application for American citizenship. He's been in the US for at least 30 years. Seems to me he's had plenty of time to get in front of this. Tough lesson learned. Funny thing we have rules and laws that need to be followed for a reason. Maybe he can help others to do the right thing from here on out. God bless. I'm sure he will be forgiven and back to work in no time. That's just common sense. We are a forgiving Society. This is the land of opportunity.
Bigfootlives
Otis, he is here illegally, that’s a crime, he’s a criminal.
And Tom has a great point. You are here that long and that successful and you never legally fixed THE ONE THING THAT CAN GET YOU AND YOUR FAMILY TOSSED OUT?
I heard for four years that nobody is above the law. If I stole your brand new car and they didn’t find me for 10 years could I say, I have a good business and attend church, why can’t I keep the car and not pay restitution to Otis? I’ll even drive by Otis’ house a couple times a day and honk and wave so Otis can see the car.
Immigration laws that have been on the books for years are FINALLY being enforced. The raids are legal, constitutional, and over due. The democrats made this problem with 20 million illegals in the last 4 years.
B
Just don't get why law-abiding citizens (assuming most are) believe it's Ok to break the law.
tagup
B-The immigration system is broken. There are few options to get legal, and the wait times (and costs) for application reviews are multiple years for some. American business needs labor right now, the workers are here doing the work. Is it smart to deport those experienced workers or would it be better to create a viable avenue to become legal.? Ronald Reagan did it!
At the very least, congress should create a guest worker program that meets the needs of business.
trump wants to bring manufacturing back to the US....who's going to do the work?