Metro officials are moving to clarify that city police did not have a role in immigration arrests in South Nashville over the weekend.
Following the traffic stops and arrests, residents have aired concerns about MNPD involvement. That’s because officers were present at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility where detainees were held and protests sprung up on Sunday.
Questions triggered a special meeting of Nashville’s Metro Council on Wednesday to discuss immigration enforcement. Emotions ran high during public comments as residents voiced distrust of the city government.
“I’m asking you, with everything I have, what are you going to do to protect us?” asked Ashley Warbington. “Because volunteers driving around South Nashville in the dark, hoping to give people a heads up — that can’t be our only safety net.”
In advance of the meeting, Metro’s law department released a timeline detailing what Metro knew, and when.
“The coordinated activity between THP and ICE caught everyone at Metro by surprise,” reads the letter from Metro Law Director Wally Dietz.
More: State and local officials clash over Nashville ICE raid
The city is also sharing phone call recordings. In one from Thursday, May 1, a federal official requested extra city police patrols at the ICE facility at 501 Brick Church Park Drive, “anticipating … some anger from some of the families.” Metro says a dispatcher scheduled the request as a reminder that would surface to patrol groups on Sunday.
In the meantime, on Saturday night, Metro says MNPD officers had no involvement in arrests.
By Sunday, city dispatchers were reminded of the request for extra patrols, which sent members of MNPD to the ICE facility.
Metro has filed public records requests to try to obtain the names of those detained and charged. During the meeting, Councilmember Erin Evans pressed Metro Legal on the steps it plans to take to bring people back, “other than writing letters.”
“We are doing the things that we have the authority and the power to do,” Dietz responded. “We are asking for documents. We are entitled to these documents. They should be public records … I will not rest until we know the names of the people arrested, what their charges are, the names of the detained, what they were being detained for and where they are located.”
Other councilmembers took issue with the Department of Emergency Communications for not alerting other city officials after fielding the May 1 phone call. The department’s director, Stephen Martini, said that he was looking into how the the department could change its approach.
“Hindsight being 20/20, we are having a lot of conversations now with the Mayor’s Office and with [Metro] Legal to determine what sort of notifications we can put in place,” Martini said. “We have made steps — notifications for certain locations, notifications on keywords and we’ll engage other conversations. But this, again — 21 years of doing this in Tennessee in emergency communications — I have never seen a situation like this.”
State shares arrest count
More details about the traffic stops and arrests became available Wednesday from the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The agency says it is working with ICE and has conducted 369 traffic stops, resulting in ICE detaining 94 people for further investigation.
“THP’s role is to enforce Tennessee traffic laws fairly and consistently, and our troopers continue to make lawful stops, based solely on traffic infractions, in an effort keep Tennesseans safe,” THP said. “We do not enter neighborhoods or stop vehicles based on who someone is — we stop based on what they do behind the wheel.”
The arrests have drawn condemnation from city officials and multiple advocacy groups; but support from the Tennessee House Republican Caucus.
“Tennessee will have zero tolerance for those who prove to be a threat to public safety, whether here legally or illegally,” the Republican lawmakers wrote, expressing support for enhanced immigration enforcement measures.
“Nashville residents should be highly concerned that their elected Democrat leaders choose to prioritize the well-being of criminals who are here illegally over their law-abiding constituents,” the caucus said.
Residents air concerns
Emotions flared as the council questioned Dietz, Martini, and MNPD Chief Deputy Chris Gilder. Ahead of the meeting, more than a dozen residents spoke from a packed gallery — calling on city leaders for “more accountability.”
“This is not public safety. This is the expansion of policing and surveillance in our communities,” Zacnite Vargas said. “Businesses in the area are suffering, trust in government agencies is declining, and all of us, regardless of our immigration status, should be alarmed.”
Another speaker, Ezra Howard, asked for Metro to put money towards supporting immigrants.
“It is budget season,” Howard said. “Metro needs increase dedicated funding for legal aid, as it has provided in the past with partners such as [Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition] and Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors. They need to go beyond that.”
Earlier this week, the Mayor’s Office announced a partnership with the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to assist the families of those detained. The new “Belonging Fund” can go towards emergency assistance for needs like childcare, housing instability and transportation, but cannot be used for legal services.
This story was last updated at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday.
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