EASTHAMPTON — The City Council is demanding accountability of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, passing a resolution calling for state and local law enforcement to investigate agents that have potentially broken state law, in the midst of a surge in ICE activity.
A dozen residents backed the resolution passed last Wednesday in support of, “Holding Federal Immigration Agents Accountable for Violations of Massachusetts Criminal Law,” brought forward by Councilors Koni Denham, Amanda Newton and Kiam Jamrog-McQuaid. Similar resolutions have been passed by Northampton and Amherst.
“The only thing that is going to change this murderous madness is to hold ICE accountable,” resident Sara Weinberger said, speaking in favor of the resolution. “That’s why I support the Easthampton City Council resolution.”
Three people have died this month from ICE encounters, making for a total of 10 reported deaths from such instances during President Donald Trump’s second term, according to the Associated Press.
Weinberger mentioned Colombian international Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, 25, who was killed by an ICE agent in Biddeford, Maine last Monday, and Mexican international, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who was fatally shot attempting to evade an arrest in Houston on July 7.
“On Monday, it was Biddeford, but it could have been Easthampton,” Weinberger said last week.
The resolution opens by stating that the Trump Administration “has weaponized the federal government” unconstitutionally to violate people’s basic civil liberties, “in service of a white nationalist political agenda targeting immigrants, communities of color and queer people.”
At least 14 detainees have been killed in ICE custody this year, according to the resolution. Easthampton has seen its own enforcement activity the resolution states, claiming that there are “eyewitnesses” who have reported detainments in the city. The resolution also calls out the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), saying it is refusing to investigate federal agent crimes, while coordinating with the Trump administration to adopt a “policy of noncooperation” with local law enforcement when agents kill or harm residents.
“Does a resolution matter in terms of what we can do to prosecute murderers? Maybe not. But it does show that we are standing up against what is inherently wrong,” Resident Kae Collins said at the meeting.
Councilor Jamrog-McQuaid spoke in favor of the resolution he coauthored, saying he is a second-generation American whose mother was born in Korea. Denham, along with Councilors Tamara Smith, Nathan Markee and James “JP” Kwiecinski also backed the resolution, several of whom read statements of support from residents not in attendance.
“We can’t wave our magic wand and bring these people back to their families,” Jamrog-McQuaid said. “We can’t wave a magic wand and take away the trauma that has been done to children, to communities, to families. But what we can do, is we can encourage our government to hold people accountable.”
The resolution asks the Massachusetts attorney general and Northwestern District Attorney’s Office to begin investigations where evidence shows that a crime has been committed by a federal agent. It also calls on the Governor’s Office to immediately cease all cooperation agreements with ICE, including ending the 287(g) agreement with the Massachusetts Department of Corrections and any informal agreements that may be in place.
Smith feels current ICE actions are “part of a larger picture,” saying that the “violence that has happened at the hands of ICE is really reminiscent of a lot of the racial tension that was occurring during the 2020 era.”
“Anytime you have someone who is with a weapon and with anonymity, (there is a) possibility for that interaction to become unnecessarily violent,” Smith said. “It’s really terrifying to watch some of our community members be scared to come out of their homes.”
Resident Cathy Wauczinski opposed the resolution, arguing it only represents a “small minority of residents.” She pointed to “people being murdered by illegal aliens,” citing a state trooper killed in the South a few weeks ago.
“There are too many individuals that are harmed by illegal aliens in our country and ICE is doing the job that we’ve asked them to do,” Wauczinski said.
Resident Mike Carriveau called any loss of life tragic but noted that “nobody has mentioned” a Pennsylvania state trooper recently killed by “an illegal alien.” He said that the City Council passed no resolution then “calling on the governor or the DMV to stop issuing driver’s licenses to people that are not here legally.”
Amherst resident John Bonifaz, a constitutional attorney and president of nonprofit Free Speech for People, also joined the meeting online to praise the Council’s ordinance.
“Donald Trump has used ICE, is using ICE, as a paramilitary force to terrorize our communities across this country and it must be stopped, and the state criminal laws are a form of accountability for ensuring that these federal agents are not able to engage in committing these crimes,” he said.
