Baltimore County Reinforces Stance On Immigration Raids

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — In response to a federal crackdown on illegal immigration, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr. on Wednesday reinforced a 2017 executive order prohibiting county agencies and law enforcement from discriminating against immigrants or inquiring about their immigration status.

In the statement, Olszewski said Baltimore County has “long been committed to welcoming our immigrant neighbors,” and he assured the commitment still stands.

“Our police department will not provide any assistance during immigration enforcement raids, nor will the department assist with any civil or administrative actions. Our diversity is our greatest strength, and Baltimore County continues to stand with our immigrant communities,” Olzsewski said in the statement.

President Donald Trump first announced a wave of immigration raids with a June 17 Twitter post, saying authorities would start removing "millions of illegal aliens." Officials were expected to begin raids in at least 10 major cities, including Baltimore, targeting immigrants who were ordered to be deported, according to The New York Times.

However, Trump said days later the operation was delayed to give Congress a chance to address problems at the southern U.S. border.

Last Friday, he confirmed to reporters at the White House that ICE would conduct a sweep the following weekend to pick up people who had outstanding deportation orders. "It's a major operation," Trump said, according to ABC News. He said the agents would be "focused on criminals...before we do anything else" and said undocumented immigrants would be returned to their countries or jailed.