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Collins Announces End to Ice Ops in ME 01/30 06:21
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- Federal immigration officials have ceased their
"enhanced operations" in Maine, the site of an enforcement surge and hundreds
of arrests since last week, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said Thursday.
Collins, a Republican, announced the development after saying she had spoken
directly with Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.
"There are currently no ongoing or planned large-scale ICE operations here,"
Collins said in a statement, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement. "I have been urging Secretary Noem and others in the
administration to get ICE to reconsider its approach to immigration enforcement
in the state."
The announcement came after President Donald Trump seemed to signal a
willingness to ease tensions in Minneapolis after a second deadly shooting
there by federal immigration agents.
Collins said ICE and Border Patrol officials "will continue their normal
operations that have been ongoing here for many years."
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that it would
"continue to enforce the law across the country, as we do every day." ICE,
which is part of DHS, said in a statement that it performed its duties despite
meeting resistance from demonstrators. Neither statement addressed whether ICE
was drawing down in Maine.
"The early success of this operation displays how effectively ICE officers
can operate anywhere and in any environment," said ICE Deputy Assistant
Director Patricia Hyde.
Collins' announcement comes more than a week after ICE began an operation it
dubbed "Catch of the Day."
Federal officials said about 50 arrests were made the first day and that
roughly 1,400 people were operational targets in the mostly rural state of 1.4
million residents, 4% of whom are foreign-born.
In Lewiston, one of the cities targeted by ICE, Mayor Carl Sheline called
the scale-down welcome news, describing the agency's operations as "disastrous"
for the community.
"ICE operations in Maine have failed to improve public safety and have
caused lasting damage to our communities. We will continue working to ensure
that those who were wrongfully detained by ICE are returned to us," said
Sheline, who leads a city where the mayoral position is required to be
nonpartisan.
ICE has also launched immigration operations in Minnesota, Chicago and other
cities. While Trump has pushed to deploy National Guard troops to crack down on
both immigration and crime, as of early January, the White House said it was
backing down after facing several legal roadblocks.
Court records show a complex story
Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin last week said some
Maine arrests were of people "convicted of horrific crimes including aggravated
assault, false imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child."
Court records painted a slightly different story: While some had felony
convictions, others were detainees with unresolved immigration proceedings or
who were arrested but never convicted of a crime.
Federal authorities highlighted the case of Elmara Correia, saying she was
"arrested previously for endangering the welfare of a child." However, Manuel
Vemba, who has a four-year-old son with Correia, said Thursday that a neighbor
called police about the boy playing outside with friends, and that he doesn't
believe any charges were brought.
"She does not have any criminal record, and she's not the type of person
they're labeling her," he said. "Elmara is a mother, just like many other
mothers out there, who loves her child and has sacrificed for her child."
Vemba described his former partner as trustworthy, hardworking and devoted
to their son, who is on the autism spectrum and loves to play soccer and run.
"She did everything she could to guarantee that my son was safe and happy,"
he said.
The boy is now staying with Vemba, who has told him, "Mommy's traveling.
Mommy will be back." On Wednesday, a Massachusetts judge granted her request
for a bail hearing.
A critical election year
Collins is up for reelection this year. Unlike a handful of Republican
senators facing potentially tough campaigns, Collins has not called for Noem to
step down or be fired. She's also avoided criticizing ICE tactics, beyond
saying ICE should not target people who are in the U.S. legally.
Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who announced her Senate candidacy in October
and could face Collins in the general election, has challenged immigration
officials to provide judicial warrants, real-time arrest numbers and basic
information about who is being detained in Maine. She also accused Collins of
governing "without any courage" shortly after the Republican voted in favor of
funding the DHS and several other agencies Thursday.
ICE must account for its actions in Maine even if it is scaling back, Mills
said Thursday.
"We still do not know critical details about the 200 individuals ICE says it
has detained, many of whom appear to be here legally, who have no criminal
record and who are not 'the worst of the worst.' The people of Maine deserve to
know the identities of every person taken from here, the legal justification
for doing so, where they are being held, and what the federal government's plan
for them is," Mills said.
First-time Democratic candidate Graham Platner -- who is challenging Mills
in the primary -- has criticized both Mills' and Collins' handling of ICE and
has demanded the agency be dismantled. Platner organized a protest Thursday
outside Collins' office in Portland, Maine.
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