There is a lot of anxiety surrounding the ongoing immigration raids in the Los Angeles area. There are several agencies involved, but what are they legally allowed to do?
Carlos Granda, an Eyewitness News reporter, spoke with an immigration expert to clarify.
Since the beginning of the month, federal agents have been raiding businesses and parking lots on a daily basis. Many people are now questioning the legality of the arrests. For example, do federal agents require a warrant?
One video shows federal agents raiding a car wash in Glendale and making arrests. According to experts, agents do not always need warrants.
“We’re seeing so many warrantless arrests. “We are seeing federal agents go into public places and start conversations with people,” said Jean Lantz Reisz of the USC Gould School of Immigration Law. “Now, in order to go into a private area, federal agents need a warrant, and that warrant needs to be signed by a judge.”
Reisz says agents can approach anyone and ask questions. You may be required to give them your name, as well as the location of your birth and current residence. If you answer their questions, it may be used against you.
“Federal agents are saying, ‘I entered into a voluntary conversation, based on this conversation, that created the reasonable suspicion that this person is here in violation of immigration law, and I was able to make an arrest based on what was happening in that conversation, that gave me probable cause,'” Reisz told the media.
Reisz advised you to provide your name, but if they continue to ask for more information, you can choose to say nothing and ask, “Am I free to leave?”. Agents may be unable to take further action due to Fourth Amendment concerns.
The raids were carried out by a number of federal agencies, including the United States Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
“The entire portfolio for immigration and customs enforcement is open. Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, stated that “we no longer turn a blind eye to someone who is simply in the country illegally.”
Lyons spoke with Eyewitness News Anchor Marc Brown about using other agencies in operations.
‘We must examine the situation thoroughly using the resources we have. ICE is among the smallest law enforcement agencies. “We have cooperation from our other partners,” Lyons explained.
According to Reisz, all of the agencies will most likely be involved because ICE alone lacks the resources to conduct widespread arrests.
“I would say it is not uncommon. This has been done before. I would not say that the enforcement actions and tactics we are seeing are normal. This is extremely aggressive. “Trying to arrest thousands of people per day is abnormal, but interagency cooperation is normal,” Reisz said.
Eyewitness News requested a statement from ICE regarding all of the agencies involved, as well as an update on arrest numbers in Southern California. So far, they have not responded.
