Glendale ends agreement with ICE to house detainees in local jail

Amid protests about stepped-up enforcement in the area, the city of Glendale has announced it had terminated its agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to house immigration detainees at city jail facilities.

In a statement, the city said it recognized the “public perception of the ICE contract.”

“The ICE contract — no matter how limited or carefully managed, no matter the good—has become divisive,” the statement read. “And while opinions on this issue may vary — the decision to terminate this contract is not politically driven. It is rooted in what this City stands for — public safety, local accountability, and trust.”

The decision came at the end of a weekend of unrest in Los Angeles. In response to ICE raids in local communities, protestors and activists took to the streets across the city, clashing with local law enforcement and the National Guard, which President Donald Trump deployed Saturday.

Armed with riot shields, troops pushed protesters into the streets and fired tear gas and less-than-lethal rounds into the crowds. Demonstrators shut down the 101 freeway and caused Metro trains to be cease service downtown.

Glendale officials said the agreement with the agency as been in place since 2007 with the facility located at the Glendale Police Department headquarters, near Isabel Street and Broadway.

According to the statement, Glendale police does not enforce immigration law, has not engaged in immigration enforcement and will not do so moving forward.

The city said that the daily capacity for detainees was 25 males and five females but that there are currently no detainees at the facility. Glendale received $86 per day payment per bed.

According to the city, it will not be seeking to make up the costs as it was not a revenue-generating effort for the agency.

“The decision to terminate this long-standing contract is a local one and with careful consideration of the service to our Glendale residents and businesses,” a city statement read. “While we stand by the level of service and standards of care that our Department and facility have upheld over the life of the contract, we also hold at upmost priority, the trust of our community and the relationship with our Police Department.”

The city statement said that by ending the agreement some families may have a harder time visiting loved ones held by ICE.

“Our facility offered clean, secure, climate-controlled pods with continuous access to seating areas, telephones, televisions, restrooms, showers, drinking water, and meals, as well as access to virtual and in-person visitation with loved ones — a standard not always met in other facilities,” the statement read.