San Jose officials are calling for stronger protections to immigrant communities after a federal agent in plain clothes arrested a man at an employment center.
Rose Amador, retiring CEO of nonprofit ConXión to Community which runs the employment center, said a U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) agent walked in Tuesday and identified himself as a police officer. According to Amador, the agent was looking for the man and said he had a warrant for the arrest. He flashed his phone, but Amador said he didn’t have a paper warrant. ConXión workers said the previous day the man fled from an immigration check-in office when he saw ICE agents, and agents arrested his wife.
Several agents came out of a van, arrested the man and drove away. Amador said the man is getting legal support.
ICE representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“This was not only an abduction of one of our neighbors, it was an attack on the trust our immigrant community has built here in San Jose,” District 5 Councilmember Peter Ortiz said at a Wednesday news conference. “When federal officers conceal their identity or impersonate local law enforcement, it spreads fear, it spreads confusion and it spreads distrust across our neighborhoods that is unacceptable in our city.”
In response to the arrest, Ortiz and Councilmembers Bien Doan and Domingo Candelas said they are crafting a policy to provide more support for immigrant communities through outreach and employer education on best practices in partnership with Santa Clara County. They plan to introduce the policy next week at the Rules and Open Government Committee meeting.
The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors earlier this month approved forming a county-coordinated regional response for residents facing deportation. It comes as county leaders have put $13 million since December into deportation legal defense.
The arrest happened in Doan’s district. He said ICE’s actions are unconscionable and reiterated San Jose’s commitment to protect immigrants.
“San Jose is a city built on immigrants,” Doan said at the news conference. “We are proud of that, and we stand firm in our commitment to dignity, safety and the rights of every resident.”
The employment center on Story Road, which has been open since 1994, serves as a pivotal resource for undocumented immigrants, connecting them with contractors looking to hire people temporarily for gardening, cleaning, painting and other skilled labor. It also provides them with meals, showers, laundry, employment assistance and case management. About 15 to 35 people show up every day.
Domingo Jimenez, a ConXión employee, said this is the first time an immigration-related arrest has happened at the center.
“It’s very stressful for everybody, for the community, especially because this is a place where they can feel safe,” Jimenez told San José Spotlight. “I can assure you that the agency is taking steps to change the protocol and to avoid these situations.”
Advocates say ICE activity in San Jose continues to be targeted toward certain individuals, rather than mass raids as seen in other parts of the U.S.
Two weeks ago, ICE agents arrested one person at a check-in facility on Blossom Hill Road, according to advocates with the Rapid Response Network who witnessed the incident. The network is a coalition of community-run organizations that protect immigrants and their families from deportation raids in Santa Clara County.
Earlier this month, Ortiz and Councilmembers Rosemary Kamei, David Cohen and Pamela Campos introduced a policy to require all law enforcement, including federal immigration agents, to unmask and wear identifying information when conducting operations in the city. That policy is still waiting to go before the full San Jose City Council for a vote. On Saturday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law banning agents from masking statewide, the first in the country.
Ortiz said it’s unclear whether San Jose has the authority to regulate federal agents, but he and the councilmembers who initiated the policy are prepared to fight for it.
“There’s not many case laws in regards to this arena,” Ortiz told San José Spotlight. “We are prepared to advocate for our immigrant community, both on the dais and if need be in the courtroom. We’ve already sued the Trump administration multiple times, and we’re ready to do that again.”
Story updated Sept. 25 at 9:45 a.m. Original story published Sept. 24 at 4 p.m.
Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X.
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