Collins Announces End to Ice Ops in ME 01/30 06:21

   

   PORTLAND, Maine (AP) -- Federal immigration officials have ceased their 
"enhanced operations" in Maine, the site of an enforcement surge and hundreds 
of arrests since last week, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said Thursday.

   Collins, a Republican, announced the development after saying she had spoken 
directly with Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem.

   "There are currently no ongoing or planned large-scale ICE operations here," 
Collins said in a statement, referring to U.S. Immigration and Customs 
Enforcement. "I have been urging Secretary Noem and others in the 
administration to get ICE to reconsider its approach to immigration enforcement 
in the state."

   The announcement came after President Donald Trump seemed to signal a 
willingness to ease tensions in Minneapolis after a second deadly shooting 
there by federal immigration agents.

   Collins said ICE and Border Patrol officials "will continue their normal 
operations that have been ongoing here for many years."

   The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that it would 
"continue to enforce the law across the country, as we do every day." ICE, 
which is part of DHS, said in a statement that it performed its duties despite 
meeting resistance from demonstrators. Neither statement addressed whether ICE 
was drawing down in Maine.

   "The early success of this operation displays how effectively ICE officers 
can operate anywhere and in any environment," said ICE Deputy Assistant 
Director Patricia Hyde.

   Collins' announcement comes more than a week after ICE began an operation it 
dubbed "Catch of the Day."

   Federal officials said about 50 arrests were made the first day and that 
roughly 1,400 people were operational targets in the mostly rural state of 1.4 
million residents, 4% of whom are foreign-born.

   In Lewiston, one of the cities targeted by ICE, Mayor Carl Sheline called 
the scale-down welcome news, describing the agency's operations as "disastrous" 
for the community.

   "ICE operations in Maine have failed to improve public safety and have 
caused lasting damage to our communities. We will continue working to ensure 
that those who were wrongfully detained by ICE are returned to us," said 
Sheline, who leads a city where the mayoral position is required to be 
nonpartisan.

   ICE has also launched immigration operations in Minnesota, Chicago and other 
cities. While Trump has pushed to deploy National Guard troops to crack down on 
both immigration and crime, as of early January, the White House said it was 
backing down after facing several legal roadblocks.

   Court records show a complex story

   Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin last week said some 
Maine arrests were of people "convicted of horrific crimes including aggravated 
assault, false imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child."

   Court records painted a slightly different story: While some had felony 
convictions, others were detainees with unresolved immigration proceedings or 
who were arrested but never convicted of a crime.

   Federal authorities highlighted the case of Elmara Correia, saying she was 
"arrested previously for endangering the welfare of a child." However, Manuel 
Vemba, who has a four-year-old son with Correia, said Thursday that a neighbor 
called police about the boy playing outside with friends, and that he doesn't 
believe any charges were brought.

   "She does not have any criminal record, and she's not the type of person 
they're labeling her," he said. "Elmara is a mother, just like many other 
mothers out there, who loves her child and has sacrificed for her child."

   Vemba described his former partner as trustworthy, hardworking and devoted 
to their son, who is on the autism spectrum and loves to play soccer and run.

   "She did everything she could to guarantee that my son was safe and happy," 
he said.

   The boy is now staying with Vemba, who has told him, "Mommy's traveling. 
Mommy will be back." On Wednesday, a Massachusetts judge granted her request 
for a bail hearing.

   A critical election year

   Collins is up for reelection this year. Unlike a handful of Republican 
senators facing potentially tough campaigns, Collins has not called for Noem to 
step down or be fired. She's also avoided criticizing ICE tactics, beyond 
saying ICE should not target people who are in the U.S. legally.

   Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who announced her Senate candidacy in October 
and could face Collins in the general election, has challenged immigration 
officials to provide judicial warrants, real-time arrest numbers and basic 
information about who is being detained in Maine. She also accused Collins of 
governing "without any courage" shortly after the Republican voted in favor of 
funding the DHS and several other agencies Thursday.

   ICE must account for its actions in Maine even if it is scaling back, Mills 
said Thursday.

   "We still do not know critical details about the 200 individuals ICE says it 
has detained, many of whom appear to be here legally, who have no criminal 
record and who are not 'the worst of the worst.' The people of Maine deserve to 
know the identities of every person taken from here, the legal justification 
for doing so, where they are being held, and what the federal government's plan 
for them is," Mills said.

   First-time Democratic candidate Graham Platner -- who is challenging Mills 
in the primary -- has criticized both Mills' and Collins' handling of ICE and 
has demanded the agency be dismantled. Platner organized a protest Thursday 
outside Collins' office in Portland, Maine.