Alameda County's attorney sent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement a cease and desist letter on Monday, November 9, demanding that the agency immediately stop using county property near Santa Rita Jail in Dublin for immigration enforcement. The county described that use as unauthorized and unlawful.
A news release from Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas's office said ICE had reportedly been using the parking lot outside the jail for two weeks. The release cited the Alameda County Immigration Legal Education Partnership, known as ACILEP, as confirming arrests near Santa Rita Jail on October 25 and October 30, and outside the East County Hall of Justice on November 5.
The demand followed reports of at least four immigration arrests across Oakland on Saturday. In social media posts, ACILEP said enforcement activity started at about 5 a.m. with a traffic stop on Interstate 980. The group also reported arrests near Golf Links Road, East 12th Street and 81st Avenue.
The identities of those arrested and the reasons for their arrests were not clear. ACILEP said it was working to help the people taken into custody obtain legal support. ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the reported enforcement activity.
Across the preceding two weeks, ACILEP said it had confirmed 19 arrests connected to immigration enforcement throughout Alameda County. Those arrests were reported in Oakland, Hayward, Livermore, Union City and Berkeley, as well as in Dublin near Santa Rita Jail.
In a statement issued Saturday night, the Alameda County Sheriff's Office said deputies had seen federal immigration enforcement occurring outside Santa Rita Jail. The office did not specify when those observations were made. Sheriff Yesenia Sanchez acknowledged concerns about how the activity could affect families, loved ones, attorneys and others trying to access the facility.
Sanchez said she was examining practices used by other California sheriffs and consulting county counsel to determine her legal options. She also emphasized the responsibility of her office to protect everyone's rights, enforce the law impartially and respond to community concerns with compassion and professionalism.
Bas condemned the enforcement activity, alleging mistreatment and due process violations that were separating families and spreading fear. She said the county would work to protect residents' rights and their access to essential county services. Her office's release presented the letter as a demand to end ICE's use of county property near the jail.
