Questions about immigration enforcement in Watertown are something that City Manager George Proakis has heard a lot recently, and he provided some information about the role of the Watertown Police and what they can and cannot do when federal agents are operating in town.
Proakis went into detail about several topics related to federal immigration enforcement and how the local law enforcement can interact, or not, during the Feb. 10 City Council meeting.
“I’ve received some questions recently about the relationship between local government and federal immigration enforcement. As we’ve seen federal officers more actively seeking and arresting people in the surges that they’ve done many communities, I’ve been asked what this means for Watertown,” Proakis said. “Nationally, we are experiencing things as a country that have been very unsettling for a lot of people, especially for immigrant families, and Watertown has a lot of immigrant families.”
Watertown fits within the structure of government ranging from the local to the national level, Proakis said, and Watertown’s powers are limited within that.
“ICE is a federal agency that’s permitted to enforce federal immigration laws, and there’s nothing I can do as a City Manager to do anything other than acknowledge that as a starting point. We are a part of a statewide and a federal government system where there are certain abilities for federal agents and officers to act within our city, and I work with the starting point of understanding and respecting that,” Proakis said. “And in many circumstances, they’re doing very valid criminal investigations. There are some circumstances we’ve seen recently that have really required a lot of people to ask where and how this is all going at this point beyond that, but they’re still federal immigration agents.”
He reiterated what the Watertown Police have said in the past about how the WPD works with federal agencies.
“As (Police) Chief (Justin) Hanrahan shared in January this year, it’s not the role the Watertown Police Department to enforce the federal immigration regulations. Their duty is to protect and serve everyone who lives, works or visits in our visits our city, no matter where they were born or where they call home,” Proakis said “Watertown Police have official policies that note that the enforcement of the nation’s federal immigration laws is the responsibility of the federal government. Accordingly, the Watertown Police does not undertake immigration related investigations unless attached to significant felony violations. A person coming into contact with the Police Department shall be afforded all of the civil rights, due process and equal protection safeguards available under the Constitution, the laws of the United States, the laws of the Commonwealth and the laws of this city, irrespective of the person’s immigration or documentation status.”
Proakis added that the Watertown Police does not detain people at the request of immigration officers, does not share information with other government registries based upon immigration status, and does not participate in civil immigration raids.
“Police will not interrogate a person at the request of an ICE agent. They will not independently facilitate an immigration raid or facilitate agents’ access or entry to a dwelling,” Proakis said. “They also will not impede the rights of any person engaging in lawful peaceful protest or assembly.”
When federal immigration enforcement agents come to Watertown, Proakis said sometimes they will alert the Watertown Police, but other times they will not. He added that it is helpful when federal authorities alert local law enforcement.
He added that the Watertown Police will not get involved when immigration enforcement actions are taking place.
“The police will not intervene in an ICE arrest. When they do call, it helps to know that an ICE operation is going on, because if we then get a call that says a group of men with masks and guns are showing up at this address it helps if we don’t respond thinking we’re intervening in a robbery or intervening in a kidnapping. It’s safer from everyone involved if we know going into the situation what’s going on,” Proakis said. “
A resident recently asked a Watertown Police officer if the police would respond if someone called and said, there’s people with guns and masks breaking into their home. Proakis said, yes, but the response depends who the people in masks are.
“Police will step in to intervene in a burglary or kidnapping, as any community should expect their Police Department should do, but they’re not able to intervene to stop a federal law enforcement action,” Proakis said.
He added: “If you feel at risk, please don’t hesitate to call 911, with the understanding that while working in the same space as federal agents there are circumstances where federal agents have protections under federal law and cannot be obstructed by police or the public. And we’re going to do our best to do the things that our Police Department knows how to do, and that is deescalate situations. And if there are those in need of any sort of medical assistance, we will work with our first responders to render aid to those in need. That can become difficult with federal officials involved but calling 911 is always an option.”
He was also asked whether local law enforcement would investigate potential wrongdoings by federal agents.
“The extent to which local police investigating the action of a federal official is within our circle of influence is actually more complicated,” Proakis said. “And my suggestion at this time is that a bystander who sees what they believe to be a criminal conduct by a federal agent — especially if they end up recording what they believe to be criminal conduct by a federal agent — could certainly collect that information and share that information with local officials, and we can share that information with the Attorney General, with state officials, etc.”
Cities and towns around Massachusetts have sought answers from state prosecutors about what is allowed.
“My local colleagues are seeking more guidance from our state attorney general’s office, and will continue to do so, but I would say, you know, if you’re a peaceful protester and you record something that you think might be a criminal action, sharing with local officials isn’t a bad thing,” Proakis said.
Some have suggested that local governments make rules about how ICE can operate, such as whether they can wear masks, and how they identify themselves.
“It is not likely that local government can compel such an action from a federal agency,” Proakis said. “I don’t think we can pass a local rule to tell federal agents to do that, that is likely an issue of federal policy, and that’s an issue for Congress. And I think there certainly has been some conversation at that level to do that.”
Some federal agents wear gear marked as “Police,” and Proakis said that there are certain things that people can check to see if the officer is from the Watertown Police.
“Our local officers here in Watertown are required to provide a name and badge number when requested, and all our uniformed officers have name tags from which you should be able to identify,” Proakis said. “The uniformed officers have the Watertown Seal on a patch on their shoulder. They have a name tag. Those are our local officers who are trained to the standards of our local officers.”