Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

listen live donate
listen live donate
listen live
donate
  • News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
    Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
  • Podcasts & Shows
  • Schedules
  • Events
  • Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
    Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • State Government
  • Immigration
  •  

Feds Say Courthouse ICE Arrests Necessary

  •  Sally Schilling 
Friday, March 31, 2017 | Sacramento, CA
  

Federal officials responded Friday to the California Chief Justice's criticisms of courthouse arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly say Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who make courthouse arrests are doing what is necessary and are acting within the law. That’s what they wrote in a response letter to California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye’s this week.

The letter criticizes Cantil-Sakauye for her recent claims that ICE agents are “stalking” undocumented immigrants in courthouses. 

“Stalking has a specific meaning, which describes criminal activity involving repetitive following and harassment of the victim,” Sessions and Kelly's letter to Sakauye reads. “Your characterization of federal law enforcement officers is particularly troubling.”

Sessions and Kelly go on to say local sanctuary measures have eliminated many of the places, such as jails, where agents are allowed contact suspects. “As a result, ICE officers and agents are required to locate and arrest these aliens in public places,” they wrote.

They added, because courthouses screen for weapons at the entries, courthouses provide a place for agents to make a safe arrest.

Cantil-Sakauye has recently spoken out against the practice, arguing that ICE officials need to consider the consequences of arresting people inside courthouses. She says it creates fear and makes people reluctant to participate in the justice system.

“Witnesses and victims will no longer come to court to report or bear witness against the bad guys, and will not report crimes,” Sakauye told Capital Public Radio’s Capitol Bureau Chief Ben Adler this week. “We encourage people to come to court because this is where you settle your disputes. It’s not vigilante justice…”

In a Sacramento town hall meeting earlier this week, acting ICE Director Thomas Homan said courthouse arrests are aimed at specific individuals with a criminal history and these arrests will continue.

“We don’t go to courthouses looking for victims. We don’t go to courthouses looking for witnesses,” Homan told the crowd.

Listen to Capitol Bureau Chief Ben Adler’s full interview with Cantil-Sakauye on Insight.


Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

    Related Stories

  • The 'Dangerous' Path Forward: A Conversation With CA Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye

    Thursday, March 30, 2017
    We hear Capitol Bureau Chief Ben Adler's conversation with Chief Justice Tani-Cantil Sakauye on her call to ICE agents to stop making arrests at courthouses.
  • Rich Pedroncelli / AP / File

    California Chief Justice Says Immigrant Arrests At Courthouses 'Making Us Unsafe'

    Wednesday, March 29, 2017
    Immigration arrests outside courthouses "are perfectly legal" but are "making us unsafe." That was the reaction Wednesday by the chief justice of the California Supreme Court to recent comments by the head of U.S. immigration enforcement.
  • Vanessa S. Nelson / Capital Public Radio

    Trump Immigration Chief Faces Hostile Crowd At Sacramento Forum

    Wednesday, March 29, 2017
    The head of U.S. immigration enforcement defended recent deportations in California in front of a heated crowd in Sacramento.

 Immigration and Customs EnforcementICE

Sally Schilling

Director of On-Demand

Sally Schilling is a Davis native and a graduate of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. She has reported on redwood poachers robbing national forests in Humboldt County and the dangers of melting tropical glaciers in the Peruvian Andes.  Read Full Bio 

Sign up for ReCap and never miss the top stories

Delivered to your inbox every Friday.

 

Check out a sample ReCap newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

Thank you for signing up for the ReCap newsletter! We'll send you an email each Friday with the top stories from CapRadio.

Browse all newsletters

More State Government Stories

Photo by Larry Valenzuela, CalMatters/CatchLight Local

State may scale down its new home loan program designed to assist first-time homebuyers

March 22, 2023

Photo by Jeff Chiu, AP Photo

Court ruling opens door to gig driver unionization bill, union says

March 20, 2023

Rich Pedroncelli / AP Photo

Proposed bill would overhaul referendum petition process in California

March 22, 2023

Most Viewed

California coronavirus updates: COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to spread of a dangerous fungus, researchers say

CalFresh emergency benefits end this month — here’s what to know

State may scale down its new home loan program designed to assist first-time homebuyers

CSU faculty salary study shows wide dissatisfaction despite pay being at national averages

Cal State contends with 'unprecedented' enrollment declines

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Most Viewed

California coronavirus updates: COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to spread of a dangerous fungus, researchers say

CalFresh emergency benefits end this month — here’s what to know

State may scale down its new home loan program designed to assist first-time homebuyers

CSU faculty salary study shows wide dissatisfaction despite pay being at national averages

Cal State contends with 'unprecedented' enrollment declines

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    •  
      (916) 278-8900
    •  
      (877) 480-5900
    •  Contact / Feedback
    •  Submit a Tip / Story Idea
  • About

    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Stations & Coverage Map
    • Careers & Internships
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
    • Press
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile Apps
    • Smart Speakers
    • Podcasts & Shows
    • On-Air Schedules
    • Daily Playlist
    • Signal Status
  • Connect

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen Live

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2023, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.