Whittier’s mayor on Wednesday, July 16, pushed back on critics who last week slammed the City Council for delaying a vote that would force anyone claiming to be a federal agent to identify themselves in the course of arresting people, saying the council was only following state open meeting laws.
“The city did exactly what was requested when the proposed ordinance was brought forward,” said Mayor Joe Vinatieri. “We must follow the Brown Act, so to suggest that the City Council refused to take action is a misrepresentation of the request that was made.”
Councilmember Mary Ann Pacheco introduced the ordinance on federal immigration enforcement at the end of the council meeting on July 8, after most of the 60 speakers who addressed the group demanded leaders take action against ICE raids and protect its immigrant community.
Pacheco said the ordinance is simple: require anyone claiming to be a federal agent not wear a mask and wear some kind of official designation, including their name and the agency they represent.
“The overriding thing I heard tonight is ‘Do something,’” Pacheco said at the July 8 meeting, characterizing the move as “a way to postpone doing something.”
Residents and community members have packed the 400-capacity Whittier Community Theater since ICE raids began in Los Angeles County on June 6. City officials moved its meeting from City Hall to the theater starting June 10, correctly anticipating the crowds.
On July 8, Pacheco, the lone Democrat in the Republican-led council, asked the council to consider the ordinance she presented. After Councilmember Fernando Dutra proposed directing further study of the impacts of ICE operations on the city and its residents, Vinatieri suggested adding the ordinance to that motion.
The motion passed 4-1, directing staff to analyze Pacheco’s proposal as well as comments from speakers and return with its recommendations on Aug. 12.
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, Assemblymember Lisa Calderon and Rep. Linda Sanchez, whose districts include Whittier, said they were disappointed by the move, saying its lack of immediacy minimized “the very real fear and trauma immigrant communities have been experiencing.”
The council could not have voted on the ordinance immediately, Vinatieri said, since California open meeting laws require an ordinance be put on the agenda for future action before it can be voted on by the City Council. City staff will present its findings and recommendations at the Aug. 12 council meeting.
“Any disappointment at the City Council is misplaced – the city did exactly what was requested when the proposed ordinance was brought forward,” Vinatieri said, adding the criticism implies the city has power over the federal government, which it does not. “As elected officials, we all must work together for the good of all those who elected us.”
Former state Senator Martha Escutia spoke in support of the proposed ordinance at the July 8 meeting, calling it a vital guard rail protecting Whittier residents. Other speakers at the meeting decried what they said is the council’s weeks-long inaction in the face of heightened immigration sweeps in the city, asking how many more people will be abducted until the council meets again.
The city’s statement reiterated that while the City Council and the Whittier Police Department believe that all law enforcement should be open and transparent when interacting with the public, U.S. government agents are not required to adhere to a local government’s regulations and cannot be required to do so until compelled by Congress.
On July 15, 21 state attorneys general, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta, called on Congress to do just that, petitioning the body to advance legislation prohibiting immigration agents from wearing masks to conceal their identity and requiring them to show their identification and agency-identifying insignia.
