ICE Agents Must Identify Themselves In Philly Courts: Sheriff

PHILADELPHIA — As Philadelphia continues to rebuke Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policies and efforts, the Philadelphia Sheriff's Office dealt another blow to the Homeland Security Department Monday.

Philadelphia Sheriff Jewell Williams informed Homeland Security that its ICE agents must identify themselves to Sheriff’s Deputies if they are on duty inside a Philadelphia courtroom.

According to Williams' office, authorities learned that plainclothes ICE agents staked out city court rooms to apprehend undocumented immigrants from an Inquirer and Daily News article.

That article says at least three arrests of presumed to be undocumented people have been made in the Criminal Justice Center.

"Unless they identify themselves to the Deputy assigned to the court room, we have no idea who they are or what their intent is," Williams said. "An ICE agent may be perceived as an intruder trying to disrupt or intimidate participants in a proceeding, in which case our deputies would intervene.

Williams said ICE agents could easily and confidentially disclose their presence or intentions to a Deputy Sheriff.

"Our deputies provide security for everyone in the court," he said. They know if police officers are present. Deputies need to know if other law enforcement officers are present."

Sheriff’s Deputies provide security for all Philadelphia courthouses including the Criminal Justice Center, City Hall, Family Court, Traffic Court, and Philadelphia Parking Authority Court.