Activists, family urge Monrovia council to secure report and permanent memorial for Roberto Carlos Montoya Valdez

Family members and activists used the Oct. 21 public-comment period to press the Monrovia City Council for a permanent memorial and for updates on an investigation into the death of Roberto Carlos Montoya Valdez after an immigration enforcement action.

"We want to see a permanent memorial for Roberto to commemorate his life and death as a result of the brutal, unjust tactics of ICE," speaker Sherry Lochner said during public comment. "The Monrovia City Council silence on Roberto Carlos Montoya's death is deafening."

Lochner asked the council for three things: progress on securing the investigative report into the circumstances of Montoya Valdez's death, assistance identifying a permanent site for a memorial and a public denouncement of the ICE raids she described as unlawful. Joseph King, who said he volunteers at the Home Depot day-labor site and is friends with organizers, thanked council members who attended a recent vigil and described ongoing efforts to maintain memorials despite vandalism.

City Manager Dylan Feek told the council staff had followed the council's earlier direction and used local liaison contacts in the governor's office to request assistance from the governor's office and the state attorney general to obtain information and support for the city's inquiry. "So that happened, early or late last week," Feek said, and staff would provide a report back to the council "assuming that there is one." Feek also said the city is not using the state's web portals for that request but coordinating directly with local liaison contacts.

Why it matters: Speakers framed the death as a result of federal immigration enforcement and asked the city both to help obtain investigative materials and to consider a lasting memorial. City staff confirmed an intergovernmental request was made to the governor's office and attorney general's office and that the city will report back to council when it has information.

Ending: No formal council action on the memorial or a public statement was recorded in the meeting. Staff said it would report back to council with any materials or responses received from state offices.