In the first months of the new administration in D.C., we saw an uptick in border patrol activity. The height of this activity took place in January when a team of El Centro border patrol agents traveled to Kern County, making arrests and questioning individuals at popular meeting locations for farmworkers. While border patrol leadership claimed that the operation was targeted and centered around individuals with a history of criminal activity, subsequent reporting from Cal-Matters countered these claims.
As a result of this operation, a lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of the United Farm Workers (UFW) and individual farmworkers. The lawsuit argued that agents targeted people solely based on being Latino or farmworkers, which violates Fourth Amendment protections against arbitrary arrest. On the other hand, the Department of Homeland Security argued that the Court doesn’t have jurisdiction to review Border Patrol detentions and that the ACLU’s claims had, in any case, been resolved by new guidelines and training issued to its El Centro division.
These new guidelines prohibit the El Centro Sector from making warrantless arrests unless they can show probable cause that the individual is in the U.S., violating immigration laws, and likely to flee before a warrant can be obtained. The guidelines further outline that just being in the U.S. without authorization does not justify an arrest, and vehicle stops must be based on “specific, articulable facts” that are then documented on formal immigration arrest records. Training will also include writing reports and complying with the Fourth Amendment. More than 900 agents from the El Centro division will go through training on the new guidelines.
In our advocacy efforts to elected officials in D.C. and Sacramento, we have stressed the vital role the immigrant workforce plays in our citrus businesses. Our efforts, and those of many other industry organizations, to get the Farm Workforce Modernization Act through Congress have been an uphill battle, but it is one we continue to push for.
During the height of Border Patrol operations, we also quickly worked to communicate individual rights under the Constitution to the industry. We encourage employers to continue to educate their employees on their rights. You can view resources for this on our Labor and Employment webpage.
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