Worcester releases body cam footage of woman's arrest by ICE agents
The city of Worcester released police body camera footage and audio files recorded by officers during the arrest of a Brazilian woman by federal agents, with the city manager issuing an executive order on how the Worcester Police Department (WPD) responds to federal arrests in the city.
The footage and audio were uploaded online into a playlist on the city's YouTube channel on Friday. The first video plays five 911 calls made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents requesting police assistance and calls from people at the scene. The agents were in the process of detaining Rosane Ferreira-De Oliveira, 40, of Brazil, at Eureka Street on May 8.
In the first video with the 911 call, an ICE agent told a dispatcher that 'we have a crowd surrounding an officer, and he's requesting immediate assistance... Can you send units, please?' The agent said around 25 people were surrounding the other agent.
Another recording pleads for police to intervene in the ICE arrest, with the dispatcher telling the person that police were on their way.
Among the calls was one from a person 'on behalf of' City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj of District 5.
'We need [Worcester Police Chief Paul] Saucier here now,' the person said. '...We need Chief Saucier. Get Chief Saucier, please... I need him here right now.'
The other three videos show body camera footage taken by Worcester police officers Shauna McGuirk, Paul Hanlon and Juan Vallejo after they arrived at the scene. Each video is between 10 to over 25 minutes long, while the five recorded calls are almost six minutes altogether.
Along with releasing the footage and 911 call from that day, City Manager Eric Batista issued an executive order to establish 'guidelines for local response and involvement in federal enforcement of immigration laws and operations including investigations and civil detainments performed by ICE officers,' according to a statement from Batista's office.
'Enforcement of immigration laws is within the jurisdiction of the federal government, not the municipality and as such, municipal resources shall not be used toward that end,' the city statement continued. 'The municipality and the WPD are committed to promoting safety in the community regardless of immigration status.'
Worcester police are also requesting that the court dismiss the case against Ferreira-De Oliveira's 17-year-old daughter, who was arrested by officers on May 8, Saucier said in the same statement.
To this request, Saucier said in the statement that 'it is important to emphasize that assaulting or interfering with law enforcement officers as they carry out their duties is never acceptable.'
'No person will be arrested or held by the WPD solely on the basis of a federal civil immigration detainer, including extending the length of detention by any amount of time once an individual is released from local custody, or before being transferred to court or admitted to bail,' Batista's office said.
In his statement, Batista said he recognizes 'the significant impact this incident has had on our community,' that it 'has created division and caused trauma to the individuals directly involved and to the greater community at large.'
'It is my hope that releasing all of the body-worn camera footage and establishing a clear policy on how municipal employees are to engage with ICE agents is the first step in repairing any unintentional harm and can help determine how, as a community and a municipality, we respond in these situations,' Batista said. 'I want to be undeniably clear that our police department will never target individuals based on their immigration status. The body-worn camera footage from the first responding officer will show that the target of ICE's operation was already detained by federal agents prior to WPD's arrival and that WPD did not assist ICE with the civil arrest.'
He called the footage 'of a family being torn apart is disturbing to watch,' but the city cannot step in to prevent federal officials from detaining a suspect. Batista called on the community to come together and support each other, 'and not allow external forces to divide us. Worcester has always and will always be a welcoming and inclusive city.'
Releasing the footage and audio is intended to ensure 'transparency and provide a clearer perspective of the incident,' Saucier said in the statement. Doing so is meant to 'illustrate the chaotic nature of the situation as experienced by the officers who had to make rapid, critical decisions in the moment to ensure the safety of everyone on the scene.'
The day before Ferreira-De Oliveira was detained, ICE agents stopped her 21-year-old daughter's partner after he honked at a car, which 'turned out to be an undercover ICE car, and agents decided to arrest him,' according to the daughter, Augusta Clara Moura, 21, in the description of a GoFundMe campaign.
ICE agents came to Clara Moura's home and told her to sign immigration papers and 'demanding I return my partner's car,' she wrote. Clara Moura, her baby and her 17-year-old sister left the house in a car and ICE agents stopped them and told her she was under arrest.
Clara Moura called Ferreira-De Oliveira to pick up her baby when ICE agents turned to the mother and arrested her, Clara Moura wrote. Her 17-year-old sister, carrying the baby, stood in front of the car to stop it before she handed off the baby and tried to kick the passenger side door, Worcester police previously said.
Officers pushed her to the ground and arrested her for reckless endangerment of a child, disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, police said.
Police also arrested Ashley Spring, who was charged with assault and battery on a police officer, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, disorderly conduct and interfering with police officers. Spring was released on her own personal recognizance and is scheduled to return to court for a pre-trial hearing on June 23.
Clara Moura's sister has since been released from custody and is now with family friends, along with Clara Moura, Clara Moura's baby and another sister who is also a child.
Ferreira-De Oliveira, who comes from Brazil, is currently being detained at the Wyatt Detention Center in Central Falls, R.I., according to ICE's Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS).
Worcester to release body camera footage of police response to ICE arrest
ICE must show more integrity in deportation arrests (The Republican Editorials)
Boston Puerto Rican restaurant opens second location in Worcester
Read the original article on MassLive.
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