Latest news with #MichaelMartinez
USA Today
30-05-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
ICE detains over 100 in one of Florida's largest immigration raids
ICE detains over 100 in one of Florida's largest immigration raids More than 100 people were detained in one of Florida's largest single-day immigration raids at a Tallahassee construction site on May 29 in what was described as a panicked scene with some law enforcement wearing face coverings and camouflage. Homeland Security Investigations, which operates under U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Florida Highway Patrol and other Florida and federal law enforcement agencies conducted the immigration raids at a student housing development site in the College Town neighborhood by Florida State University. Another construction site nearby was raided an hour earlier, worker Michael Martinez told the Tallahassee Democrat, part of the USA TODAY Network. Officers reportedly checked every individual's identification and permits before releasing or arresting them. The Department of Homeland Security said on social media that authorities had "arrested more than 100 illegal aliens, some of which were previously deported and others with criminal backgrounds," calling it "a targeted enforcement operation." People detained in a bus told reporters at the scene they were from Mexico, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Honduras, while officials said others detained were from Guatemala, El Salvador and Colombia. The raids come as President Donald Trump's administration touts its crackdown on migrants who enter the country illegally, expanding arrests nationwide while driving down border crossings. ICE agents have begun detaining people who show up for mandatory court appearances about their immigration cases. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature have pushed the state to become the "toughest" on illegal immigration in the country this year, enacting laws and directing hundreds of millions of dollars to state and local law enforcement to expand the state's authority to detain and house undocumented immigrants to comply with Trump's mass deportation mandate. ICE and Florida law enforcement arrested 1,120 people in April during "Operation Tidal Wave," the largest joint immigration operation in Florida history. The operation lasted six days, from April 21 through April 26. In the last month, ICE raids have also rattled Nashville, where nearly 200 people were arrested in a weeklong operation, according to the Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. In northern Nevada, more than 50 were arrested in Reno, Carson City and Tahoe earlier in May and most have been deported, the Reno Gazette Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported. Florida is currently appealing a federal judge's decision to temporarily block a new law creating state crimes for undocumented immigrants entering or re-entering Florida. The raid was likely the largest single illegal immigration sweep in Florida since DeSantis agreed to join in on Trump's aggressive mass deportation agenda. Here's what we know about the ICE raids in Tallahassee, Florida: Who was detained in Tallahassee, Florida, ICE raid? Law enforcement officers detained more than 100 people at a construction site near the Florida State University campus. One detainee, 43-year-old Juan Carlos Hernandez, told the USA TODAY Network-Florida he didn't know where the group was being taken. Hernandez said he did not have a criminal record, and he said others on the bus had asylum cases. "I'm sad," he said. "It's not the time or the moment for us to leave." Many of the construction workers were in bright yellow shirts and jeans – work clothes. Some didn't have any money on them, Hernandez said, others were worried about their family members who they would be leaving behind. Some of those detained were handcuffed, while others were zip-tied. They were led into the back of white school buses with no air conditioning on a day where the feels-like temperature was 86 degrees. Pedro Arroliga, 30, held up his residency card and said he came from Nicaragua and has been a resident for two years. He said federal agents checked him inside the gate of the construction site and said he was OK to go, but then he was taken and put on the bus. Martinez, the worker from the other job site nearby, said agents came and raided his construction site about an hour earlier. People were fleeing and only a few got caught. 'It's just crazy how they're doing this,' Martinez said. 'Disturbing' raid causes halt in city's construction sites Caity Salter, a recent Florida State University graduate, stood behind a fence with other FSU students watching the scene unfold. "Some of the people, the construction workers, (were in) zip ties and they were in a line ... and it was just very disturbing to see that," she said. Ray D'Amico, general superintendent for the plumbing contractor at the construction site, watched his employees, who were zip-tied and waiting to be processed by federal agents. Once word got out about the raid, he said, other construction sites in town stopped for the day and workers went home. Videos of laborers getting tackled to the ground by agents at 9 a.m. spread quickly, and by noon, many of Tallahassee's construction sites were silent. "This is infuriating. This is absolutely ridiculous," D'Amico said. How to locate detainees in custody? ICE inmate search To locate detainees who are 18 or older and in ICE custody for more than 48 hours, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement website has an online detainee locator system. According to ICE, you don't have to provide any information about yourself or create an account to use the system, but the system collects information including your internet domain, IP address and the internet address of the website from which you linked directly to the ODLS website. However, ICE says the information is not used to identify or track users and isn't used in immigration enforcement activities. Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY; C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY Network-Florida; Antonio Fins and Valentina Palm, Palm Beach Post
CBS News
02-05-2025
- CBS News
Maryland's annual Fallen Heroes Day ceremony honors first responders who died in the line of duty
Maryland police, firefighters, emergency personnel and other first responders who have died in the line of duty will be honored during the 40th annual Fallen Heroes Day in Baltimore County. The ceremony, held at the Fallen Heroes Memorial at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, brings together all groups of the public safety community. Fallen Heroes Day is held each year on the first Friday in May. It provides an opportunity for the state to show its appreciation for first responders who risk their lives to protect citizens. The ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. Maryland's Fallen Heroes ceremony On Friday morning, Gov. Wes Moore ordered that Maryland flags be lowered to half-staff to honor Fallen Heroes Day. "Our state is stronger because of the members of our military, law enforcement, firefighters, and first responders who served and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," the governor said. Friday's ceremony will start with a procession of honor guard units from across Maryland, motorcycle police and mounted units. The family members of those who died in the line of duty will attend the ceremony, organizers said. Maryland remembers first responders who died in the line of duty According to the U.S. Fire Administration, there were 76 on-duty firefighter deaths reported between 1990 and 2024 in Maryland. So far in 2025, the agency reported one on-duty firefighter death in Maryland. Montgomery County Firefighter Christopher Higgins died after suffering a medical emergency while battling a fire in January. He will be honored at the ceremony. The Officer Down Memorial Page reported two police line-of-duty deaths in 2024, including a Cecil County Police sergeant and Parole Agent Davis Martinez. Both of them will also be honored during the Fallen Heroes ceremony. Agent Davis Martinez was killed in May 2024 while he was visiting the home of a convicted sex offender in Montgomery County. It was the first time that a parole agent died in the line of duty in Maryland. Davis Martinez's brother, Michael Martinez, told WJZ that Davis was everyone's cheerleader. Michael Martinez also said his brother felt like his job was not appreciated enough, but being named a fallen hero, he said, speaks for itself. A total of nine fallen heroes will be honored during the ceremony, including Baltimore Police Officer Daoud Mingo, who died in December 2023. Mingo was injured when his motorcycle collided with a vehicle that had turned into his path during a funeral escort in 2015. He continued to serve the department until his retirement in 2020. He died from complications related to his injuries. Howard County Firefighter Richard Blankenship, Jr., will also be honored. According to event organizers, Blankenship served for two decades before he died from occupational cancer. "As we mark the 40th anniversary of Fallen Heroes Day, we are humbled and grateful as we remember all of the brave and heroic first responders who have made the supreme sacrifice. They did their jobs with grace and determination so that we all could be safe and protected," said President of Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens Jack Mitchell.
CBS News
28-04-2025
- CBS News
Slain Maryland parole agent to be honored at this year's Fallen Heroes Day ceremony
Even though it's been almost a year since Maryland parole agent Davis Martinez was killed, his brother continues to feel him around. Right before Michael Martinez, Davis Martinez's brother, interviewed with WJZ, a phone in the room rang. "That's just Davis," Michael Martinez said with a smile. "He's just messing with us." Davis Martinez will be one of the public safety personnel honored at the 40th annual Fallen Heroes Day observance at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens on Friday, May 2. Michael Martinez described what it's been like living without his brother and his best friend. On May 31, 2024, Davis Martinez died while making a home visit to Emanuel Edward Sewell, a convicted sex offender in Montgomery County. Sewell has since been charged and is awaiting trial for his death. Davis Martinez's death marked the first time a parole agent died in the line of duty in Maryland. Everyone's cheerleader Michael Martinez said Davis Martinez was often the trendsetter for him and their younger brother, Joseph Martinez. Davis Martinez was the first in the family to graduate from high school and college. "He had to be the person who set everything. He wants us not to mess around or fumble it," Michael Martinez said. Michael Martinez also credits his older brother for giving him the travel bug. The two traveled to four European countries in 2023, and their favorite ended up being Turkey. "He really pushed me to do things that I wouldn't consider," Michael Martinez said. Michael Martinez said his older brother is the reason he's made it this far in life. But Davis Martinez was also everyone's cheerleader. "There would be moments where I just sort of accepted the path I was gonna go, but Davis did not. He saw there was something within me," Michael Martinez said. Honoring his legacy Michael Martinez said it hasn't felt as though a year had passed since Davis Martinez's death. "It really does feel like it happened six months ago, or even less. It's just, since his passing, everything has gone 100 mph," Michael Martinez said. Ever since losing his older brother, though, Michael Martinez said his family has been receiving an outpouring of support from around the country. Support has especially come in the form of rubber ducks. Jeep ducking, as it's called, is a popular tradition among Jeep owners. Once it was known Davis Martinez owned one, many have been sending rubber ducks in his honor. Michael Martinez, who now owns his brother's jeep, said they'd come in by the boxload. Michael Martinez said his older brother sometimes didn't feel like his job was appreciated enough. But, with all of this support -- and the fact he's been named a fallen hero -- he thinks it speaks for itself. "Everybody does appreciate the type of job he does," Michael Martinez said. Michael Martinez said he's still traveling in his brother's honor, having returned to Europe earlier this year. He adds that he and his family are also leading healthy lives, as Davis Martinez would've wanted. "I've taken my mom to the gym with me, I continue to take my little brother to the gym with me. Davis, he was pretty much the first one to ring the alarm for us to do that," Michael Martinez said. When asked if, in a sense, his older brother is still taking care of him in a way, Michael Martinez said yes. "His advice just continues to ring true for us to this day," he said.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
NM Legislative Recap March 21: ‘We're still here'
Michael Martinez holds a photo of flood damage that occurred near the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire burn scar since the blaze nearly three years ago. "We're still here. We're still waiting," he said. (Photo by Patrick Lohmann / Source NM) Nearly three years after the biggest wildfire in New Mexico history, a small band of people who lost homes or endured other losses gathered in the Roundhouse on the session's penultimate day, in hopes of reminding the public that many fire victims have not received the compensation they say they deserve. On April 6, 2022, a small crew of federal wildland firefighters ignited a prescribed burn on a dry, windy day near Hermits Peak in Northern New Mexico. The blaze escaped containment lines and merged with another federal prescribed burn gone awry, burning an area the size of Los Angeles and destroying hundreds of homes. 'It wasn't just a loss of monetary wealth,' said Michael Martinez, an insurance agent who was caring for his grandmother when the fire forced Las Vegas residents to flee. 'It wasn't just a loss of homes. It wasn't just a loss of forest. It was a loss of what I would call generational wealth. 'We're not going to be able to share the beauty and the culture that was in this area for generations, because a lot of these people have been forced to relocate,' he said. Martinez organized a small gathering in the Roundhouse rotunda on Friday, displaying photos of burned homes and flooded acequias. One homeowner, Jane Lumsden, placed a photo of her house's charred remains and also her cat, Chai, lost in the fire. Congress allocated $5.45 billion to compensate fire victims for a wide variety of losses. According to the latest figures, the federal claims office tasked with providing that compensation has paid out nearly $2 billion of that money. But, 1,080 days after the wildfighters ignited that prescribed burn, too many people are still waiting for compensation, particularly those who lost their homes in the fire, Martinez said. 'We're still here,' said Martinez, who said he's been awaiting compensation for lost property since May. 'We're still waiting.' A House memorial honoring the long wait and the efforts to rebuild after the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon passed a House committee unanimously on Thursday. Even as both floors took an evening break at approximately 5:15 p.m., no information had emerged about when the tax conference committee will meet to hammer out the rift between chambers on the tax package. The word around the halls is that the meeting is expected sometime Friday evening. The Senate returns to the floor at 7 p.m., the House will also return, but at the call of the chair. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX As of 5:11 p.m., the following bills cleared the House on Friday, day 59 of the 60-day session: Senate Bill 155 would amend a section of the state's criminal code pertaining to embezzlement, specifically allowing for the aggregation of multiple incidents of embezzlement within a 12-month period against one victim, among other changes. Senate Bill 375 would allow early discharge for people who comply with probation and make other changes to parole. Senate Bill 159 would create a special license for independent movie theaters to sell beer and wine. Senate Bill 376 would make multiple changes to state employees' health benefits, including increasing the state's contribution to employee health insurance premiums and reducing the amount state employees pay. The legislation also eliminates the state health benefits program's budget shortfall. 'This bill will make a real difference for New Mexico's state employees,' New Mexico Health Care Authority Secretary Kari Armijo said in a statement. 'By reducing health insurance costs for workers and closing the program's budget gap, we're delivering real savings while ensuring long-term stability.' Senate Bill 31 would create a $150 million Natural Disaster Revolving Fund to provide zero-interest loans to replace or repair infrastructure damaged by natural disasters. Senate Bill 274 would amend current state statute to increase financial thresholds for state agencies and local governments regarding the sale, trade or lease of public property Senate Bill 302 would create amplified background investigation requirements for people applying for gaming licenses, work permits and contractor access to facilities regulated under the Gaming Control Act and the New Mexico Bingo and Raffle Act Senate Bill 303 would eliminate the need for gaming machines to meet the standards and specifications set by Nevada and New Jersey, and instead require they just meet standards set by state law. Senate Bill 133 would amend the Educational Retirement Act to raise the maximum amount a retiree is allowed to earn annually from work after retirement with an affiliated employer — from $15,000 thousand to $25,000 —without suspending retirement benefits. Senate Bill 343 addresses teacher salary rates, specifically removing exceptions currently in statute for vocational teachers. Senate Bill 201 would authorize several state and legislative agencies to approve plans by the Public Education Department for programs funded by appropriations from the public education reform fund, which was created in response to the Yazzie/Martinez lawsuit over inequitable education outcomes in the state. Senate Bill 88 would create a new Medicaid trust fund, starting with $300 million, to support and match federal funds for the Medicaid health insurance program. Senate Bill 16 would allow independent voters to participate in primary elections. Senate Bill 126 would increase the state rural universal service fund's maximum obligation cap from $30 million per year to $40 million per year. Senate Bill 383 would expand the use of revenue bonds to include rebuilding, repairing, replacing and hardening of municipal property damaged by a flood. Senate Bill 364 would allow people with work authorizations from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to work as police officers. Senate Bill 197 would allow local emergency medical services departments to sell bonds to be able to more easily afford ambulances. Senate Bill 290 would raise marriage license fees from $25 to $55. Senate Bill 236 would create a motorcycle-sized version of the existing 'look twice for motorcycles' license plate. Senate Bill 142 would update the grid modernization grant program by asking EMNRD and PRC to create a roadmap, and add new grant programs. Senate Bill 9 would align penalties for pipeline companies who violate safety regulations with federal standards. Senate Bill 120 would permanently eliminate behavioral health services cost sharing. The House voted not to pass Senate Bill 112, which would have created a new property tax exemption for student housing built on land owned by a higher education institution. The House recessed at 5:15 p.m. for a quick break and to maybe 'catch a bit of the Lobo game,' House Speaker Javier Martinez said. The Senate voted to concur on three bills the chamber had already passed, but were later amended on the House floor. The bills now head to the governor's desk for consideration. Those bills include Senate Bill 480, which would require the Public Education Department to create a report of the high school students who do not graduate within four years and provide it to the Higher Education Department; Senate Bill 11, which would require local public school districts and charter schools to develop and adopt a wireless communication device policy; and Senate Bill 353, which would amend the Search and Rescue Act to create protocols for federal, state, local and tribal agencies when Search and Rescue is called in an emergency. The Senate passed House Bill 206, which would allow the New Mexico Finance Authority to award loans or grants to qualifying projects from the water project fund; House Bill 240, which would allow the New Mexico Finance Authority to make grants and loans for drinking water projects and extends the repayment period to 10 years; House Bill 244, which would raise the minimum age of magistrate judges from 18 to 28 years old; House Bill 6, which would require employers working on projects funded by public bonds to pay the prevailing wage to their workers; House Bill 402, which would streamline and regulate credentialing of dental care providers; House Bill 41, which would allocate $13.25 million into the drinking water state revolving loan fund, the local government planning fund and the cultural affairs facilities infrastructure fund; House Bill 56, which would raise Medicaid reimbursement rates at birth centers to match the rate paid to hospitals for similar services; and House Bill 78, which would prevent insurance companies and pharmacy benefits managers from interfering with health care providers' ability to acquire and sell prescription drugs at a discount. Senators debated a provision to encourage development of brackish water for more than two hours on the floor before passing it with bipartisan support to the governor's desk. House Bill 137, called the Strategic Water Supply, changed drastically over the session. Sen. Linda Trujillo (D-Santa Fe) proposed an amendment that included additional language for protesting a project through an existing process with the Office of the State Engineer. The Senate rejected the amendment. During debate, Sen. Angel Charley (D-Acoma) urged the state Legislature to fully fund and map the state's aquifers before making a multimillion dollar investment to develop water sources, saying she's concerned about the extent of available water. 'It's giving gold rush, it's giving extraction, it's giving not thinking seven generations ahead,' Charley said on the floor about HB137. Sen. Katy Duhigg (D-Albuquerque) asked one of the bill's sponsors, Sen. George Muñoz (D-Gallup), what about his position had changed as he opposed the Strategic Water Supply bill in the 2024 session. Muñoz said HB137 was 'a completely different bill' noting that this version stripped language for treating oil and gas wastewater, and that he has 'always supported brackish water' treatment and development. HB137 passed on a 33-6 vote, six Democratic senators voted in opposition. A debate on an alternative to conservatorships was derailed after a surprise amendment inserted language from a Senate Bill that failed to advance committees last week. House Bill 149, the Supported Decision-Making Act, became a debate on Senate Bill 166, which would redefine 'harm to self' and 'harm to others' in state law to allow for more people to be civilly committed into a locked facility. SB166 passed unanimously on the Senate floor on March 12, but failed to make it through House committees. Senate Minority Floor Leader Sen. William Sharer (R-Farmington) introduced an amendment to HB149 to incorporate wording from SB166, drawing claims of 'overreach' from Sens. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez (D-Albuquerque) and Linda López (D-Albuquerque), a sponsor of the proposed supported decision-making act. She called Sharer's amendment 'overreaching what we can do.' Sharer's response: 'This is the way the sausage is made,' he said. The amendment eventually passed by a 31-7 vote. The Senate also eventually passed the Supported Decision-Making Act, which now goes back to the House for a concurrence vote. As we noted on Thursday, the clock is ticking for some bills that have already landed on the governor's desk. On Friday, she signed into law a bill reforming oversight of the Children, Youth & Families Department — a sore spot for her administration —but not without some harsh words for the Legislature and Attorney General Raúl Torrez. AG excoriates governor over message on CYFD bill
