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Hundreds speak at Camarillo City Council meeting urging action after ICE arrests and unmarked operations
Summary
More than fifty public commenters urged the city to bar local cooperation with ICE and to prevent federal agents from staging operations on city property after a wave of unmarked-vehicle arrests and community reports of masked agents in Camarillo and neighboring areas.
During a prolonged public-comment period, more than 50 residents and community organizers addressed the City Council about recent immigration-enforcement activity in Camarillo and Ventura County, urging the city to act to protect residents and halt local cooperation with ICE.
Why it mattered: Callers described a pattern of unmarked vans, masked agents, staged vehicles (including at a commercial address, 321 Cortez Circle), and what they said were instances of aggressive arrests in agricultural fields and parking lots. Multiple speakers said local people fear leaving home, attending medical appointments, or reporting crimes. Several speakers asked the council to make clear policies and to direct the sheriff’s office to stop assisting federal agents.
What callers asked the council to do: The public urged a range of actions, often overlapping: declare and enforce limits on cooperation with ICE; prohibit ICE from staging operations on city-owned property; require identification by federal agents operating locally; require deputies to verify federal agent identity and to record interactions with body-worn cameras when federal agents refuse; host Know-Your-Rights outreach and legal clinics; and allocate funds to an immigrant legal defense fund.
Representative voices and claims: Gabe Turan (mayor pro tem of Oxnard, speaking as an individual) warned that sales of nitrous-oxide cartridges in neighboring jurisdictions were an emerging public-health concern that might migrate across borders. Immigrant-rights and community-organizing groups — including Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP), 805 UndocuFund and 805 Immigrant Rapid Response Network — asked the council to direct the sheriff to halt any active assistance to ICE and to support a legal-defense fund for affected families. Several speakers reported eyewitness video or first-person accounts of local arrests at 321 Cortez Circle.
Police and sheriff cooperation — public perception vs. statements: Callers repeatedly stated they had observed sheriff or police vehicles in proximity to ICE operations, vehicles parked at sheriff facilities, or officers standing by during raids. City officials later told council members they had sought a meeting with Sheriff Jim Friehoff; the sheriff’s office agreed to produce bilingual public messaging (a video in English and Spanish) and the city said it would pursue follow-up community meetings.
Council response and next steps: Council members and the mayor acknowledged the depth of public concern and asked staff to compile legally viable options other cities have employed. Councilors asked staff to return with a menu of potential actions the city could take within its legal authority; staff also said they had already contacted the sheriff and would share the sheriff’s planned bilingual message when available. Several council members urged residents to contact federal representatives about comprehensive immigration reform.
Ending note: The comment period was lengthy and emotional; the council set follow-up steps but did not adopt ordinances or resolutions at the meeting. Council members emphasized community safety and requested staff return with options and legal analyses for potential local actions.
