An undocumented Latino man was apprehended on Monday outside Vancouver, Washington’s Franklin Elementary School.
According to Andy Lara, head of the League of United Latin American Citizens’ Southwest Washington chapter, immigration agents confronted the dad as he was on his way to drop off his children.
“Words were exchanged, specifically from (the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) that they cannot detain the gentleman with children in the car,” Lara said. “He was asked specifically if he was going to run if he dropped off his kids.”
The agents parked away from the elementary school. According to Lara, after the person dropped off his children, federal officials stopped and detained him.
He stated that there was no specific basis for holding the man.
A local defense attorney reported the arrest of another illegal individual last Wednesday outside the Clark County Courthouse in downtown Vancouver.
According to Lee Coffin, an attorney for the second individual, the unidentified man was on his way to a District Court hearing when he was stopped outside the front door by what witnesses recognized as ICE personnel.
“It was bizarre because usually in instances like this, people were picked up after they were done with court,” said Coffin, who did not witness the incident.
The alleged arrests by federal officials in Vancouver follow similar recent immigration measures in other Northwest cities as part of the Trump administration’s aggressive crackdown. They include arrests at immigration and asylum hearings in Portland, Eugene, and Seattle.
ICE stated that it could not comment on the arrests without more identifying information on the men, which advocates in the case declined to offer to OPB.
Court authorities said it would be unusual for a civil arrest to occur outside the Clark County courtroom.
While criminal arrests are occasionally made outside the county building, civil and immigration arrests are restricted to ensure that the courthouse is accessible to everybody.
The Washington State Supreme Court established a ruling in April 2020 that forbids warrantless civil and immigration arrests within the courthouse or within one mile of the court. This regulation allows the court to make additional orders if enforcement is warranted.
A separate joint policy of the Clark County District and Superior Courts states that arrests in the courthouse are prohibited unless public safety is jeopardized.
“We believe that everyone should be able to openly and fairly access the court system whether they’re a person seeking a civil case, whether they’re seeking a protection order, whether they’re someone who’s been charged with a crime,” said Clark County District Court Judge James Smith. “State law and what our policy holds is that people should be able to have equal and open access to the court system.”
Coffin declined to provide any information about his client’s detention outside the courthouse but stated that he was unaware of any other charges against the individual.
Andy Lara of LULAC stated that the man caught this week at Franklin Elementary had no criminal past.
In February, Vancouver Public Schools reiterated its policy of limiting federal immigration enforcement on school grounds. According to VPS policy, police enforcement must contact the principal before entering the school grounds, and officials must produce a court order or judicial warrant for review by the district superintendent.