Tensions Rise in Los Angeles Following Deportation Arrest Near School

A recent news article told the story of Romulo Avelica-Gonzalez, whom Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained as he was dropping off his youngest daughter at a Los Angeles school. His daughter began recording the incident with her cell phone because she didn’t understand what was happening or how ICE knew her father. Mr. Avelica has lived in the U.S. for almost 25 years, but became subject to a deportation order in 2014 based on a DUI conviction ten years ago. As news of the arrest quickly spread, local officials expressed their outrage that an immigration arrest could occur in front of a school and the individual’s child. This incident highlights the steadily growing tension between local government officials and federal immigration authorities over the enforcement of federal immigration law. Historically, local government officials have declined to assist ICE in detaining immigrants without legal status. However, these officials have no authority to prevent or stop ICE arrests or round-ups of immigrants living in the state without the proper legal status. As a result, local authorities are rightfully concerned about fear of detention and deportation preventing immigrant community members from reporting crimes or communicating with them as needed. Similar concerns and situations are occurring nationwide, in cities like Santa Cruz, El Paso, Denver, Austin, and Los Angeles. Local government officials are claiming that the more aggressive immigration enforcement tactics are making their cities and counties unsafe. Meanwhile, school officials at Academia Avance in Los Angeles are trying to prepare their other students for the possibility of their parents facing deportation. Teachers will meet with parents in conferences and ask them directly about the plans or arrangements that they may have made for their children in the event of deportation. Currently, as is the case with other public schools, the small charter school does not know which students’ parents have no legal status. Whether detention by ICE occurs at a school, church, public place, or private resident, the Oakland deportation defense attorneys of Landerholm Immigration, A.P.C. know how to help you and your family through every step of your loved one’s deportation proceedings. Take the first step today toward securing the future of your family in the United States, and call our office at (510) 756-4468 to set up a consultation with one of our highly skilled California immigration lawyers.