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Tensions erupted Tuesday as LA County supervisors suggested that some of the masked men detaining residents throughout the area were “bad players” impersonating immigration enforcement, not immigration officers.
Director Katherine Berger said staff member Godson recently had been pulled by two men in an unmarked car with flashing lights and said he had “a nice truck for those who have that last name.” One man asked him to leave the car, and the other tried to open the side door, but she told her colleagues at the weekly board meeting.
When people on the street began to record conflict, the two men drove away.
“I’m going to talk about this because I don’t know if they’re ice agents,” said Berger, the only Republican on the board.
“Don’t get it wrong, I’m not the one impersonating ice,” director Janice Hahn shot. “It’s ice.”
Berger said she called immigrants and customs enforcement to report the incident. She never responded.
“I believe that there may be people who use this group and pretend to be ice,” Burger said.
The county attorney told the supervisor that it was a requirement for immigration officers to identify themselves during their arrest, but that there was “some room” as to when that would have to happen.
California lawmakers proposed a state law Monday banning law enforcement members, including federal immigration agents, and with a few exceptions, they wore masks while working. Any attempt by states to limit federal law enforcement officials will likely face legal challenges.
Some of the videos circulating the recent attacks still have questions about which agency is responsible. Last week, a military-style vehicle arrived at Compton’s home, saying that residents were migrant raids, but ICE didn’t check the account. In other videos, the official appears in an unmarked car with his face hidden behind the mask.
“I don’t understand why they have to wear half-faced ski-type masks in Los Angeles in the summer,” said superintendent Holly Mitchell, who proposed to support a proposed bill that would prohibit county executives from hiding their faces.
The discussion came as the supervisor prepared to vote for a motion created by supervisor Hilda Solis. It called for research into how recent immigration blitz has impacted the county’s economy.
Since the attack began, many parts of the county have been creepy and residents say they have been stoned to leave their homes.
“They’re terrified,” Solis said of many people in the county’s immigrant population. “You don’t see them.”
The area surrounding Downtown, represented by Solis, was particularly hit hard amid protests, curfews and apparel raids that have hit dozens of people. Business owners in the city’s fashion district say sales have fallen by half.
But the impact is far beyond downtown. A restaurant owner in Boyle Heights, a working-class neighborhood that is primarily Latino, says the business has dried up. Hawthorne residents, who are Latino, say they are afraid they will leave their homes. Street vendors have disappeared from their regular corners. The food pantry line has been shortened, Solis said.
“Even the subways are empty,” Ligo Reyes, the county executive director of immigration, told the board. “No one is willing to come out of their house.”
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