Immigrants advised to shelter in place as feds confirm launch of Maine operation

The federal government confirmed Wednesday it has increased immigration operations across Maine as immigrants are being advised by local organizers to shelter in place as apprehensions  continue. 

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed in an email that it began on Tuesday what it’s calling “Operation Catch of the Day” in Maine, after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier told Fox News that it had arrested nearly 50 people so far. 

Those numbers have not been independently verified by Maine Morning Star nor community organizers because of Homeland Security’s otherwise silence on the matter and the inherent challenges with tracking people in the immigration system. Maine’s congressional delegation, the governor and local public officials have also not gotten responses from President Donald Trump’s administration about operations in Maine. 

“We have no information,” said Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins’ Press Secretary Blake Kernen. 

The community hotline tracking enforcement action in Maine began ringing continuously with reports of sightings on Tuesday, after the mayors of the state’s two largest cities announced last week that they were expecting a surge in ICE activity. 

As organizers continue to crowdsource sightings and attempt to track down specifics, Project Relief Maine, Presente! Maine and No ICE for Maine are advising immigrants to shelter in place, especially in the Greater Portland area. 

“Right now, it is unsafe to be outside, whether walking, driving, or waiting at bus stops,” the group posted on social media. 

Sightings of federal agents in Maine were centered around Portland and Lewiston on Tuesday but on Wednesday expanded to Westbrook, South Portland, Biddeford, Scarborough, Waterville and Belfast, said Ruben Torres, advocacy and policy manager for the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition, which runs the hotline. 

By 12:30pm Wednesday, the hotline had received 522 calls, with the most being about federal agent sightings. At the end of the day yesterday, organizers had fielded 870 calls. For comparison, the hotline received 288 calls in the entire month of December, and 195 in November. 

Gov. Janet Mills said she’s monitoring ICE activity, too. “If the Federal government has warrants, then it should show them,” she said in a statement Wednesday evening. “But if they are separating working mothers from young children, solely because they sought freedom here and have committed no crime, then the Federal government is only sowing intimidation and fear and fostering division and suspicion among neighbors — none of which is welcome.”

Maine’s members of Congress have responded to the ICE operations in their state with varying support. While Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree and independent U.S. Sen. Angus King offered clear condemnation, Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden and Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said they’re supportive so long as it is a targeted operation focused on people who have engaged in criminal activity. 

DHS Deputy Assistant Director Patricia Hyde told Fox News that the agency has 1,400 targets in Maine. In an email, DHS said they are “targeting the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens who have terrorized communities.” DHS only released information about four of the nearly 50 people reported to have been arrested Tuesday. Those the agency highlighted have convictions such as aggravated assault and operating under the influence of alcohol. 

Maine organizers have long been preparing for ICE to arrive

Meanwhile, ICE detained an Angolan man at a routine check in on Tuesday at the Scarborough field office and his lawyer told the Bangor Daily News that he has no criminal record to justify his detention. A federal judge has ordered ICE to explain why the agency detained him. 

As of the latest data from November, about 73% of people held nationwide in ICE detention have no criminal conviction. And, many of those convicted committed only minor offenses, such as traffic violations.

DHS has not responded to requests from Maine Morning Star to confirm overall arrest numbers or the reasons for those arrests. 

Community impacts 

Maine is not seeing a singular method for arrests. There’s been apprehensions in parking lots and of people walking in downtown areas or pulled over on the highway. “There’s a reason we call it a dragnet,” Ruben said. 

As a result, he said, “Some folks have been avoiding work. Some folks have been avoiding sending their kids to school and going to appointments altogether. Some folks have been creative in working with community networks that have been established to be able to get rides to go to doctors appointments.”

It’s not only immigrants who are altering their daily lives out of fear. Ruben, who is a person of color, said he’s had people accompany him to places like the grocery store so that he is not the only one in the car. 

These changes in behavior ripple out to the entire community, such as businesses that rely on foot traffic and employers who may face staffing shortages for an unknown amount of time.

MaineHealth has reported higher than usual call-outs in some segments of its workforce.

Portland Public Schools is reporting a drop in attendance. Though the specific reasons for absences don’t show up in the data, Superintendent Ryan Scallon said Wednesday during a press conference overall attendance is down more than 5%, with some schools down as much as 15-20%.  

Project Relief Maine has called for the district to close for the remainder of the week, in light of a mother who was detained after dropping her child off at school.

Local police cooperation 

Echoing Maine Republicans, Hyde and DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin criticized Maine for restricting local police cooperation with federal immigration authorities. 

“Governor Mills and her fellow sanctuary politicians in Maine have made it abundantly clear that they would rather stand with criminal illegal aliens than protect law-abiding American citizens,” McLaughlin said in a statement.

Police are already not required to and generally do not have the authority to enforce immigration laws. A new state law, which won’t take effect until 90 days after the current legislative session adjourns, aims to prevent local authorities from carrying out federal immigration enforcement, while still permitting police to investigate crimes and execute judicial warrants.

However, Maine State Police is already following the law. Maine Department of Public Safety Commissioner Mike Sauschuck issued a directive last month that essentially implemented its underlying policies.