Man taken by federal law enforcement after leaving Santa Maria Courthouse Thursday
SANTA MARIA, Calif. – An unidentified man was taken into a vehicle on Miller Street after leaving the Santa Barbara County courthouse in Santa Maria and witnesses believe he was detained by plainclothes federal agents, some of whom were believed to be waiting inside the courthouse Thursday morning.
The image below, provided by Tu Tiempo Digital to Your News Channel, shows the man being placed into a vehicle after leaving the courthouse Thursday.
Maria Salguero, a local immigration attorney with the Santa Barbara County Immigrant Defense Center, was inside the courthouse when she observed a man in civilian clothes waiting in the publicly accessible areas of the courthouse for over an hour and occasionally peering into courtrooms.
When asked if he was lost by Salguero, the man replied he was waiting for someone.
Salguero shared that she then saw a uniformed Santa Barbara County Sheriff's deputy approach the man, speak with him briefly, and give him a small business card-sized piece of paper.
According to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office in response to Your News Channel's inquiries, a deputy did approach a plainclothes man at the courthouse Thursday, confirmed that the man was a member of a federal law enforcement agency, and gave the federal agent a card with his contact information on it. The deputy asked that the federal agent notify him when he was leaving the premises.
The Sheriff's Office reiterated that it does not participate in immigration enforcement operations, but could not confirm which federal agency the man worked for nor if federal officials contacted the deputy about leaving the area or making a detention in the area.
California law limits the extent to which local law enforcement can share information with federal immigration authorities.
A request for confirmation of the detention and more details from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has gone unanswered. Any response from federal officials will be added to this article when it is received.
Your News Channel was able to confirm that the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's office was not made aware of a potential federal law enforcement action in the area prior to the detention.
Word of potential immigration enforcement at the courthouse spread via social media on Thursday. A small number of demonstrators gathered outside of the courthouse in response.
If you have more information about this incident or other potential federal immigration enforcement actions, please email Your News Channel at news@keyt.com.
This is an evolving situation and more information will be added to this article when it is received.
