Following President Donald Trump’s inauguration, his administration has moved to expand Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ordering the use of “expedited removal.” The Ann Arbor Police Department confirmed Monday that ICE agents made contact with one downtown business over the weekend.
A statement released by Andre Anderson, police chief of the Ann Arbor Police Department, clarified that, although ICE was present in Ann Arbor this weekend, no one was arrested.
“We have no information to suggest that this was a raid,” Anderson wrote. “In fact, no arrests were made.”
In Ann Arbor, ICE has the authority to conduct enforcement actions nationwide and does not need to notify local law enforcement before a visit. In Monday’s press release, Anderson reaffirmed AAPD’s commitment to equitable policing for all members of the Ann Arbor community. Washtenaw County Sheriff Alyshia Dyer stated earlier this month that her office does not plan to assist ICE with enforcement activities. However, this does not prevent ICE from carrying out operations independently.
Anderson acknowledged that the incident has caused distress throughout the community and reaffirmed the department’s commitment to serving all Ann Arbor residents.
“We understand there is a lot of fear and anxiety in our community regarding immigration-related enforcement,” Anderson wrote. “The AAPD remains committed to fair and equitable policing for everyone in this community, regardless of immigration status.”
In an email to the U-M community Tuesday evening, Chris Kolb, Vice President for Government relations, and Tim Lynch, Vice President and General Counsel, released guidance for interactions with federal immigration enforcement agents. The email detailed appropriate responses in the event of an enforcement action at the University of Michigan.
Daily News Editor Emma Spring can be reached at sprinemm@umich.edu.
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