LAPD documented four immigration-related incidents in May, including one in which federal officials notified the department ahead of an immigration enforcement operation, according to a monthly report presented Tuesday at the Police Commission meeting.
The report stems from Mayor Bass’ Executive Directive 17, which requires the department to produce monthly reports. It’s meant to provide more transparency about LAPD’s interactions with federal immigration authorities. The directive also requests that the Board of Police Commissioners update LAPD’s guidance for interactions with federal immigration officers.
Every month, the department reviews incidents where officers document or receive reports of alleged unlawful acts by federal agents. Last month, it identified 10 potential incidents.
After further investigation, LAPD determined that six were unrelated to immigration enforcement. No officers were dispatched to the four incidents that involved federal agents. Two of the calls came from community members, one call from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and another from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). LAPD did not provide more details about those incidents.
LAPD said this report includes all incidents related to calls or requests for service. It does not have the overall number of enforcement actions that have occurred in the city. LAPD sometimes posts on social media when they are working with federal agencies.
During Tuesday’s meeting, commissioners said they’d like future reports to include more detail about those encounters while protecting the identities of those involved.
“I recognize that this is aggregated data. [In the report] there is absence of any depth to the four immigration related instances,” said Commissioner Jeff Skobin. “I believe that, as long as the details are anonymized, further information and understanding of what happened in those situations is important for us.”
The department previously reported receiving eight calls in January and none in February. Immigrant advocacy groups have met with former commissioner Teresa Sánchez-Gordon and Inspector General Matthew Barragan to express concerns about LAPD’s involvement in federal immigration enforcement. The groups reported in May, after their initial presentation before the commission was cancelled, that they’ve received more than 14,000 calls from residents about immigration enforcement since last July.
Following that presentation, Sánchez-Gordon encouraged the groups to keep sharing the information they gather with the commission. When asked whether the board had been working with the groups since then, spokesperson Sarah Bell said on Tuesday that the monthly immigration updates are only required under Bass’ directive .
In addition to the department’s report, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) presented its own findings as part of an ongoing audit of the department’s response to calls for service related to federal immigration enforcement actions.
The OIG also flagged 10 incidents, and after further review concluded that officers responded quickly and with “proper demeanor.”
Both LAPD’s report and the OIG identified an instance in which the department received notification from the Department of Homeland Security about “upcoming immigration enforcement.” According to Christina Mesesan, a police special investigator with OIG, law enforcement agencies operating within city limits often coordinate activities to eliminate overlaps or prevent accidental clashes – a process known as “deconfliction.”
Skobin asked whether those interagency communications would be included in future updates. Mesesan acknowledged the importance of defining what goes into reports to ensure everyone adheres to the Mayor Bass’ directive.
“The goal here is transparency,” Skobin said. “There’s additional interactions that are occurring, to the extent they can be documented in part of this report, I think that is only a positive.”
LA Documenter Martin Romero contributed to this piece from the LAPD Board of Police Commission meeting. LA Documenters trains and pays LA residents to take notes at local government meetings around Los Angeles. You can find meeting notes and audio at losangeles.documenters.org
