Quote:ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A man identified as E.C. had a criminal case against him dismissed in 2017 in Metropolitan Court, but when he walked outside the courthouse he was arrested by Immigration and Customer Enforcement Agent.

A man identified as J.D. in May was arrested by agents while leaving the courthouse after his case was reset.

On Wednesday, a group of advocates for immigrants gathered outside the courthouse and said they had collected hundreds of signatures for a petition asking the state Supreme Court to put in place new rules that will restrict ICE agents’ behavior in and around state courthouses. Twenty five cases of people who were arrested by ICE agents after making a court appearance were described in an index in the petition. The immigrants weren’t identified but in many cases their attorneys were.

Joseph Sanchez, a public defender, said ICE’s current practices in New Mexico and other states has had a “chilling effect” on the immigrant community. Many people are afraid to either cooperate as a witness or victim in a case, or show up to court to handle minor manners like parking or speeding tickets, he said.

“We know of people who are not showing up for court because they are afraid of being ripped from the children’s arms,” said Mariá Martinez Sanchez, a staff attorney with the ACLU, which was one of the organizations that circulated the petition.

Nearly 250 New Mexico attorneys and retired state Supreme Court Justices Richard Bosson and Edward Chavez and retired state court judges Susan Conway, Eugenio Mathis and Peggy Nelson signed the petition, along with about 40 law firms, several legal associations and other community and faith-based organizations.

The petition asks for the court to order that ICE agents not be allowed to enforce administrative warrants in and around courts and instead have to get judicial warrants that are signed by a judge. Oftentimes, Martinez Sanchez said, ICE will make arrests under the authority of a administrative warrant that is written by an agent, and not a judge.

(08-29-2018 04:06 PM)umbluegray Wrote:  Interesting, ask the Courts to put new rules in place?

Governing from the bench?

These people really have no regard the Constitution.

(08-29-2018 04:11 PM)gdunn Wrote:  How dare ICE arrest an illegal immigrant after their court appearance for a crime they committed.