ICE is known to use deceptive tactics, including impersonating a police officer that violates the Fourth Amendment of many immigrants without notice. Warrantless raids that are without probable cause, it can be difficult for many to determine if this is an officer that they can trust. Prompting questions that are asked towards the resident and/or their family are:

• We're police investigating a crime and just want to ask a few questions. Can we come in?
• We're police and there is an issue with your car. Can you come outside?
• We're probation officers looking for a person that lives at this house. Is he here? Can we speak with him?

Usually, it's seen as harmless, and the ICE agents disguised as an officer as welcomed into the home or are cooperated with easily to discuss further of the lie at hand. Then, everything changes and innocent people are taken into detention centers and are further violated of their rights.

The Fourth Amendment does apply to ICE detainers, and ICE must have probable cause that a person can be deported before it may detain them. Cases such as Gonzalez v. ICE and Kidd v. Wolf are examples of how anti-immigration administration lessens scrutiny for ICE and their affiliates within their scope of authority, making neighborhood safety more at compromise.

In order to enter private property, HSI agents must either be given permission to enter or serve a judicial warrant. If residents of a home or proprietors of a business give permission, the resulting “consensual search” purportedly avoids the complications of Fourth Amendment protections. The ICE handbook emphasizes the ease with which agents can satisfy constitutional requirements by following a few simple guidelines, such as requesting rather than demanding information from targets.(Intercept)

Regulations from handbooks are constantly changing or are poorly viewed by agents that hinder the rights of constituents that follow ordinance and respect our country. ICE doesn't really care either. According to the ACLU, necessary reforms that are being asked to the Biden Administration include strict limits on any street arrests, prohibiting federal agents from impersonating local police, and stopping ICE from tapping local police to do its bidding, including through the 287(g) program.

ACLU and other organizations that support immigrants have been on the frontline with support networks throughout California. They provide workshops and events that help people learn about their rights, promote campaigns in supporting incarcerated members in detention centers, and mobilizing policies that protect undocumented Americans, including when confronted by a police officer or a federal agency.

ACLU SoCal's campaign called ICE Not Welcome includes a guide for undocumented individuals to prepare themselves if they were to be in contact with ICE portraying as police or probation officers. Click here to learn more: ICE NOT WELCOME: Verify, Document, and Report | ACLU of Southern California (aclusocal.org)

Related Content:

• ICE Agents Should Know the Law, but They're Fine with Warrantless Raids (vice.com)
• ICE Handbook For Searches Aims to Avoid Legal Challenges (theintercept.com)
• kidd_v_wolf_-_complaint.pdf (aclusocal.org)
• ICE NOT WELCOME: Verify, Document, and Report | ACLU of Southern California (aclusocal.org)
• Backgrounder on ICE Detainers and the Fourth Amendment: What Do Recent Federal Court Decisions Mean? | American Civil Liberties Union (aclu.org)
• ICE's Impersonation of Police Officers Challenged in Court | ACLU of Southern California (aclusocal.org
• This Deceptive ICE Tactic Violates the Fourth Amendment | ACLU