SAN DIEGO (CNS) - Two unmarked vehicles driven by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers left the parking lot of Herbert Ibarra Elementary School Friday following a confrontation by "community patrols," although ICE officials deny the agency was conducting an operation on school property.
The school's principal, Valerie Jurado, said in a statement to families of students that although she was unaware of any affiliation between the vehicles and any government agencies, she acknowledged how the belief made people uneasy.
"We understand how unsettling this report is and we stand with our community in our desire for ALL our students to be in a safe learning environment," Jurado wrote. "Our teachers and staff remain ready to support our students and ensure a day of calm and learning.
"We encourage our parents and community to take care of one another and support one another during times of uncertainty like this. School communities should be sacred spaces where all students deserve to obtain a high quality education, and all families feel welcomed."
Jurado reminded parents that ICE agents were not allowed on campus without a signed warrant. The San Diego Unified School District has a dedicated webpage to explain rights, regardless of immigration status: www.sdusdequity.com/protecting-students.
"At this time, there is no indication of any enforcement activity on our campus, and all students and staff are safe," Jurado wrote.
Patrick Divver, field officer director for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations in San Diego, said while the vehicles in the video were operated by ICE agents, they were not there for any operation at the school.
"At no time did ICE conduct enforcement activity on school grounds, nor did any officer exit their vehicle while briefly in the parking lot. Any suggestion otherwise is completely false," he told City News Service. "ICE San Diego officers were conducting a targeted enforcement operation in the City Heights area when activists began harassing our officers. As a result, the officers pulled into the first available parking lot.
"The interference of activists in law enforcement operations creates unnecessary risks to themselves, the community, and our officers. These actions hinder our ability to remove individuals who pose a threat to public safety and contribute to misinformation that endangers everyone involved."
Members of the San Diego Self-Defense Coalition, Union del Barrio and Association of Raza Educators, who responded to reports of the vehicles around 6:40 a.m. on Friday, shouting warnings to nearby communities members about an immigration action were planning to host a news conference outside the school at 4 p.m. to condemn ICE actions at schools.
"Immigration and Customs Enforcement has continuously said they are not conducting immigration enforcement actions on school properties, and today's actions contradict their statements," the activist groups wrote in a joint statement. "We condemn the campaign of terror that has been unleashed in migrant working-class communities and the targeting of families with school aged children in and around school facilities."
Earlier this week, ICE arrested a man near Park Dale Lane Elementary School in Encinitas while on his way to work.
Encinitas Union School District officials confirmed the man's daughter is a student in the district.
"We are alarmed and disturbed by this event and its impact on children and families," a letter from the district to families said.
The immigration agencies sent KPBS a statement Wednesday night confirming the arrest and said the man was undocumented and from Guatemala. ICE said in the statement the man was alone in the car when he was stopped and that the woman and child seen in the video arrived at the scene as the arrest was taking place.
"ICE San Diego finds it unfortunate that an individual chose to insert a child into an active law enforcement situation," the statement read, before criticizing statements released by public officials such as "before the facts of this case were fully known."
Earlier this month, ICE agents arrested a parent outside Enrique S. Camarena Elementary School in Chula Vista during the morning drop-off period. Cell phone footage captured by bystanders and posted online showed federal agents approaching a vehicle on the street.
Divver said in a statement that a woman who had been ordered deported in absentia by a San Diego immigration judge in 2022 was arrested.
"The arrest was part of ICE's ongoing enforcement efforts and was resolved promptly, safely and not on the school grounds. The school was not involved in the incident, and there was no impact on students, staff or the school premises," Divver said.
The arrest prompted Chula Vista Elementary School District Superintendent Eduardo Reyes to inform families and staff in a letter that protocols were in place preventing unauthorized access to schools and limiting law enforcement officials from interacting with students unless there's an active emergency or warrant.
"We understand this may cause concern, and we want to reassure you that our schools remain safe spaces for all students," Reyes wrote.
Reyes recommended that families create a plan for the district to care for their children "in the event that you are unable to pick them up or drop them off due to unforeseen circumstances."
His letter continued, "The Chula Vista Elementary School District is committed to serving every student, regardless of citizenship or immigration status."
