2 days ago
Los Angeles-area pastor denounces immigration operations after arrest on church property
After a series of immigration operations took place across Los Angeles County once again on Wednesday, some pastors gathered to publicly denounce the actions of agents who detained a man on church property.
It happened in Downey outside of Memorial Christian Church, one of several locations where operations took place in the city, according to Tania Lopez.
She's the senior pastor at the church, who says that as a person of faith, it's her duty to put herself out there and try to find out exactly why the man was detained.
In cell phone video footage captured by Lopez, the agents can be heard asking people repeatedly not to interfere and that they were just doing their jobs.
"They don't care that faith leaders are out there," she said during a press conference after the incident. "They are coming, and they are relentless and cruelty is the point. ... So we will meet that cruelty with love."
Lopez claims one of the agents pointed a gun at her when she approached the SUV they were in, when she attempted to ask for the name of the man they had detained.
"So when they chose to draw their weapon on me, I kept saying, 'I'm not here violently, I am asking you to tell me why you're doing this,'" she said.
Since Friday, federal agents with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Department of Homeland Security have conducted immigration operations across Southern California, resulting in more than 300 arrests, according to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt
Lopez was joined by other community members at the news conference, many of whom say that their interactions with federal agents have been haunting.
"Wehn we said we don't want this on our property, this gentleman just shouted, 'The whole country is our property,'" said Downey Memorial Christian Church Reverend Pastor Al Lopez. "When someone tells that to you with a weapon in their hands, that was a very clear message."
Federal agents can legally enter public areas of private properties, including waiting rooms, lobbies and parking lots. If they do not have a signed judicial warrant, they can wait for suspected undocumented immigrants to come outside.
CBS News Los Angeles contacted ICE but has not received a response.
