The Upper Darby Council passed a resolution Wednesday to restrict cooperation with ICE in response to growing concerns about the agency’s activities in the diverse township.
The 11-member council, made up entirely of Democrats, voted unanimously to pass a resolution saying the town will not use its resources to assist ICE with non-criminal immigration enforcement. But the largely symbolic resolution nearly mirrors the municipality’s already-existing guidelines, leading to criticism that it doesn’t go far enough.
The resolution’s passage comes after Parady La, an Upper Darby resident struggling with addiction, died last month in a hospital while in ICE’s custody. It also comes after the chaotic scenes in Minneapolis, where federal agents fatally shot Renee Good and Alex Pretti as President Donald Trump’s administration targeted the city with a massive immigration enforcement operation.
These recent events have fueled anxiety in Upper Darby, where nearly a quarter of the population is foreign-born compared to 15% in Philly. Armed ICE agents wearing masks have become a familiar sight, prompting residents to question why their community is suddenly under pressure, including high school students who held a walkout earlier this month.
Upper Darby Council President Marion Minick called the resolution a chance to show immigrants in the community “they are not alone.”
“We can demonstrate through our votes and through our voices that Upper Darby Council will do everything within our legislative power to shield our residents and their families from this climate of intimidation,” he said.
The council’s resolution comes as local governments across the country and in the Philadelphia area try to curb ICE’s impact on its residents. Last month, Haverford passed a similar measure and Bucks County ended its agreement with the agency that allowed sheriff’s deputies to act as immigration enforcement.
Upper Darby Council member Kyle McIntyre, a progressive community organizer who began his term last month, emphasized that the resolution is “just the start.”
“There is so much more than we can do, and we will be doing, and I make that solemn promise to the community right now,” he said before the vote.
“If we don’t do more, hold us accountable,” he added.
Mike Clarke, the town’s solicitor, said that police will cooperate with ICE if the agency has a criminal warrant signed by a judge.
“Local law enforcement is not supposed to be in the immigration enforcement business, and essentially that’s what this resolution is saying … but if it’s a criminal warrant they will be involved,” Clarke said.
An FAQ about ICE on the township’s website already stated that the municipality doesn’t participate in civil immigration enforcement or ask residents their immigration status, though it does cooperate with lawfully issued criminal warrants and court orders. Township spokesperson Rob Ellis confirmed that the resolution reaffirms the town’s existing internal policy.
The lack of cooperation seems to be going both ways.
Upper Darby Mayor Ed Brown said earlier this month that ICE would no longer communicate with local police to tell them when they’re operating in the township, calling the change “scary.” ICE did not immediately respond to a request for clarity on Thursday.
Some meeting attendees expressed concern about the reaffirmed policy getting in the way of public safety, and McIntyre later said the policy ensures anyone in Upper Darby can feel comfortable reporting crimes to the police. He said “anybody that commits a crime in Upper Darby Township will be held accountable,” regardless of their immigration status.
Jennifer Hallam, who said she has worked with immigrants in Upper Darby for almost a decade, urged the council to postpone their vote to instead pursue legislation that has more teeth.
“The current resolution really just preserves the status quo,” she said.
She called for a resolution that would restrict ICE from municipal property without judicial warrants, prohibit the collection and sharing of immigration status sharing among municipal employees, and prohibit ICE from wearing masks. Philadelphia lawmakers are attempting to ban ICE from wearing masks and experts are split on whether the measure would be legally sound.
McIntyre said in an interview that Wednesday’s resolution puts the council’s values down on paper and provides clarity to the community, but he acknowledged that a resolution isn’t enforceable.
A death in ICE custody close to home
The community has been grappling with the death of La, a 46-year-old Cambodian immigrant and Upper Darby resident who, according to his widow Meghan Morgan, struggled with addiction. La came the United States in 1981 as a refugee around the age of 2. He became a lawful permanent resident a year later but lost his legal status after committing a series of crimes over two decades, ICE said.
ICE said agents arrested La outside his home last month before receiving treatment for severe withdrawal in a Philly detention center. He was admitted to the hospital in critical condition, where his condition worsened and he died, the agency said.
Morgan and La’s daughter Jazmine La said they believe he wasn’t given proper medical treatment and the Pennsylvania ACLU filed a freedom of information act request surrounding his detention and death.
McIntyre called on Delaware County District Attorney Tanner Rouse and Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner to investigate La’s death last month.
Rouse said at the time that Delco law enforcement was not involved or aware of La’s detainment when it happened, and his office would investigate it. He said Thursday that surveillance footage showed La was detained “without violence” but his death in Philadelphia should be answered by “investigating authorities” in the city.
Krasner’s office declined to comment, saying it’s a federal matter.
Staff writer Jeff Gammage contributed reporting