Man detained outside San Mateo County jail by men who sheriff's office can't confirm were law enforcement
The office of San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus.
SAN MATEO, Calif. - The San Mateo County Sheriff's Office was trying Thursday evening to confirm whether a group of men in tactical gear and ballistic vests that took a man off the street upon his release from the county jail Wednesday night were actually federal agents, and from what agency.
Sheriff Christina Corpus said Thursday that the sheriff's office was not notified of, or involved in, any federal immigration enforcement. Corpus reiterated the county's policy of not assisting or facilitating such operations, except in cases where a judicial warrant is served at the jail.
She said the man was taken off the public sidewalk in front of the county's main jail, Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City, about 9:30 p.m.
"The law enforcement personnel who took the person into custody were wearing exterior ballistic vests and other gear commonly associated with federal immigration enforcement officials, but we have not been able to identify which agency," Corpus said.
Requests for confirmation about whether the operation involved federal agents or potential impersonators were not immediately returned by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other agencies dealing with immigration enforcement.
Some cities and counties in California have been considering local legislation to require federal law enforcement to identify themselves, and a bill at the state level introduced by State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, advanced through committee last week, but it was unclear whether any of those jurisdictions had such legal authority over federal law enforcement.
States, cities and counties with sanctuary policies decline to dedicate local resources to federal immigration enforcement to encourage participation with local law enforcement.
"The public must know that the county's policy is not to cooperate with ICE and that our jails are not a pipeline for deportation," said Supervisor David Canepa in a text message.
A request for comment from the San Mateo County Rapid Response Network, a county sponsored hotline that reports on federal immigration operations in the county and offers guidance and legal resources, was not immediately returned.
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