‘It’s not right.’ Advocates want Merced Sheriff to sever all ties to ICE
Advocates for undocumented immigrants in Merced County remain skeptical about how closely the Merced County Sheriff’s Office works with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement despite Sheriff Vern Warnke’s assurances he’s upholding California law.
Warnke said deputies would only hold an inmate for the federal agency commonly called ICE if agents make requests related to federal warrants. The Sheriff’s Office complies with the Assembly Bill 2792, the Transparent Review of Unjust Transfers and Holds Act, he said this week.
“The Merced County Sheriff’s Office does not conduct investigations regarding a citizen’s immigration status whether on patrol or in the corrections environment,” Warnke said.
ICE submitted 194 requests in 2017 to detain undocumented immigrants at the Merced County Jail, according to numbers from Warnke. Sixty-six inmates were arrested by ICE agents after release from the jail last year, but zero were interviewed inside the jail, he said.
The Merced County Jail’s website sometimes lists scheduled release dates for inmates. The Sheriff’s Office never notified ICE in 2017 that an inmate would be released prior to informing the general public, Warnke said.
That doesn’t seem to match up with the statistics, according to advocates like Tanya Golash-Boza, a sociology professor at UC Merced.
“How would he know that number if he had no contact with ICE?” she asked. “How does he know that 66 people were arrested? How do those people come to the attention of ICE?”
The overwhelming majority of inmates targeted by the ICE requests were Hispanic or Latino, which made up 182. The requests also included 11 Asian or Pacific Islanders, 1 white person and no African-American people, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Advocates offered no specific evidence that showed Warnke’s statistics were not accurate during a public forum this week. They did express frustration that they were not able to ask him follow-up questions.
Advocates argue Merced County and the Sheriff’s Office should take a stronger stance against working with ICE. Undocumented immigrants and their loved ones said they live in fear that they’ll be separated from their families over any infraction.
“The fear that I live with on a daily basis that I don’t know whether my parents are going to be OK or not or if something’s going to happen to them on their way to work, it’s not right,” Merced resident Isai Palma said. “ICE should not be something that people have to be concerned about because our local elected officials are allowing them to be coming into our communities.”
Beyond efforts from ICE that separate families, it’s counterproductive for local police or deputies in already taxed agencies to be doing any work for ICE, which has considerably greater resources, according to Merced resident Salvador Sandoval.
Many undocumented immigrants work in the agricultural industry in Merced County, he said. “I think we need to acknowledge that they need to feel safe,” he said. “It’s important for the community in order to report crimes, they need to feel safe.”
Of the 194 people for which ICE requested a hold, 55 were accused of drunken driving, 33 allegedly committed assault and 32 were suspected of committing narcotics offense, the Sheriff’s Office said. Six were accused of sex crimes, three of homicide or attempted homicide, and 17 of weapons offenses.
The alleged crimes also included 30 domestic violence accusations, 24 property crimes, three robberies, and nine gang enhancements.
At the recent public forum on ICE, which is required under California law, many Merced County residents spoke against the federal agency. The Board of Supervisors took in a presentation from the sheriff and received comments from the public, shutting down the public’s attempts to get specific questions answered.
Merced County Supervisor Lloyd Pareira said he empathizes with the undocumented immigrants who live in Merced County and raise their families, but said his empathy does not extend to people who have committed a crime.
“It’s not a one-sided topic. Maybe it’s not what you’re doing, but it feels like what you’re doing is supporting somebody who has attempted murder,” he said to the crowd at the forum. “Somebody who has taken somebody else’s life. It’s hard to have a whole lot of empathy for that person.”
A number of cities around the country, including San Francisco and Santa Ana, have adopted policies that say they will not work with ICE.
Another resident Romina Ruvalcaba, who is also a UC Merced professor, said she was formerly undocumented and has relatives who have been separated from their loved ones.
“The numbers the sheriff presented seem low compared to the number of residents here (in Merced County),” she said. “These numbers have great impacts on the community as a whole. These are communities we need to protect.”
This story was originally published November 21, 2018 at 2:21 PM.