‘No one should fear their government’: King County Council joins push to put guardrails on ICE

The King County Council passed a motion Tuesday, joining other government officials in calling for funding restrictions and regulations of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

King County council members are urging Congress to place conditions on DHS funding that would limit how immigration agents operate in communities. The conditions include requiring warrants for arrests, mandating body cameras, banning enforcement at schools, hospitals, and places of worship, ending contracts with for-profit detention facilities, and restoring oversight of ICE operations.

“Here in Martin Luther King County, we believe in welcoming our neighbors, in keeping families together. We believe in the strength that comes from the deep interconnectedness of our communities, and we know that immigrants make this county stronger,” King County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who sponsored the motion, said at the council meeting. “Together, we will continue to uphold the values of Martin Luther King County by investing in communities and ensuring that our communities, especially our most vulnerable, can thrive and that they are safe.”

The motion passed 9-0.

“The raids are designed to stoke fear. They are designed to ensure that they prey upon the most vulnerable,” Mosqueda continued. “They are sowing and manufacturing chaos intentionally. They are trying to divide communities by scapegoating immigrants. This will not work, and actions like this, that I hope will take place across jurisdictions in this country, can show that we are pushing back on this abuse of power.”

King County council member: ‘ICE’s presence is making America less safe’

King County Councilmember Rhonda Lewis also called out the uptick in ICE enforcement.

“I co-sponsor this amendment because a great injustice is being done by our federal government to the American people, and our constitutionally guaranteed civil rights,” she said. “ICE’s presence on American streets is making America less safe. People of color and historically underserved people are overtly and consistently the target of this violent, lethal lawlessness.”

Lewis believes ICE’s presence is harming citizens.

“What’s happening in our cities and the streets of our cities is bad for our mental health. It’s bad for students, and it’s bad for our communities,” she said. “Residents of King County should feel safe here. Kids should feel safe going to school, and their families should feel safe sending them there. No one should fear their government.”

King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci echoed Lewis’ sentiment.

“We’re seeing people in some version of uniform, going into communities, terrorizing those communities, escalating and creating violent situations when their job should be to do the exact opposite,” Balducci said.

Democratic senators oppose DHS funding bill, raising shutdown risk

Democratic senators have vowed to oppose a DHS funding bill following the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, The Associated Press reported. The opposition has increased the chance of a partial government shutdown.

King County Councilmember Jorge Barón pointed out that ICE was granted $75 billion last year over four years — nearly $19 billion annually, almost twice King County’s budget. He noted that there are additional billions of dollars for Border Patrol, on top of the $10 billion currently pending in the Senate.

“Even if that bill doesn’t pass, they already have almost twice the amount of money that they had under the standard budget,” Barón added.

He said council members are pushing for guardrails around ICE.

“We’re not saying defund ICE completely. We are saying you need to have accountability mechanisms,” Barón said.

King County prosecuting attorney reaffirms ICE is no exception to prosecution

Earlier Tuesday, King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion issued a statement regarding the deployment of ICE agents.

“As King County’s chief legal advisor, I’m proud that King County is joining governments across the country in challenging the unconstitutional deployment of ICE agents in Minnesota,” Manion stated. “By using the legal tools available to us to thwart these illegal actions, King County is taking steps to not only protect the people of Minnesota, but also safeguard our own community.”

“If someone commits a crime, and a case can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, they should expect to see a courtroom. Our laws apply whether you are a civilian, or if you are part of local, state, or federal law enforcement – and ICE agents are no exception,” she continued.

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