Walla Walla community, schools respond to fear of federal immigration enforcement
Immigrant advocacy groups, schools and law enforcement in the Walla Walla Valley are planning for possible U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement presence and deportations following policy changes made by President Donald Trump's administration.
Walla Walla Immigrant Rights Coalition Executive Director Abby Muro said that so far, no agents with ICE have been seen in the area. However, the fear is rising.
“There’s a lot of folks that have our emergency line and have reached out to ask questions — ‘What’s going to happen if I get detained? What’s the likelihood of ICE raids in Walla Walla?’ Just a lot of fear and uncertainty,” Muro said.
President Donald Trump signs an executive order on birthright citizenship in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday, Jan. 20.
Trump’s administration has taken sweeping immigration action since his inauguration on Monday, Jan. 20.
As a candidate, Trump promised to carry out mass deportations across the country. Since taking office, he issued an order ending automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. and rescinded guidelines that previously barred ICE officials from making arrests at schools, churches and hospitals.
His administration also has expanded power for immigration enforcement to quickly deport migrants and canceled planned flights for refugees.
The citizenship order is facing legal challenges and was temporarily blocked by a federal judge in Seattle on Thursday, Jan. 23.
In response to uncertainty and fear in the community, Muro's coalition is sharing resources, and schools and law enforcement are reiterating their policies and state guidelines related to immigration enforcement.
Area law enforcement agencies are unaware of any imminent raids or other ICE actions. That’s according to officials at the Walla Walla County Sheriff’s Office, Walla Walla Police Department, College Place Police Department, Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office.
A spokesperson for the Milton-Freewater Police Department could not be reached.
Sgt. Nick Loudermilk of Walla Walla PD said that when raids happen, ICE usually gives his department a heads-up.
“They call us and say, ‘Hey, we’re here today. We’re going to be working, just FYI,’” he said, “and we find out literally last minute.”
According to 2024 U.S. Census figures, 24.4% of Walla Walla County’s population, 8.2% of Columbia County’s population and 30% of Umatilla County’s population identifies as Hispanic or Latino.
Law enforcement
Loudermilk, Chief Deputy Richard Schram of the Walla Walla County Sheriff’s Office and Capt. Sterrin Ward of the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office said that since Trump’s return to the White House, their agencies have not received calls from people worried about possible ICE activities or reporting someone they believe is without permanent legal status.
However, since the start of the year, the Immigrant Rights Coalition has had an uptick in calls from people who could be affected by immigration enforcement as well as community members who want to know how they can help.
In fact, Muro said, there is a rapid response team of community members working with the coalition in partnership with Central Washington Justice for Our Neighbors. The team acts as first responders, taking tips about ICE sightings and verifying them. There have been two reports of agents in the Valley recently, but the team was able to confirm that they were not with ICE.
Loudermilk said his department does not coordinate on their arrests with ICE “in any way.”
“If there was any type of immigration intervention, it would be after we booked the person in jail,” he said. “We are not notifying Immigration of any of our arrests. We don’t send them booking lists. We don’t do anything.”
Several local law enforcement officials emphasized that their own statutory role is not to enforce immigration laws.
Washington and Oregon are among a handful of states with “sanctuary” laws that prevent state and local law enforcement from helping to carry out federal immigration policy by, for example, targeting people on the basis of their citizenship status or giving their personal information to federal immigration authorities except in certain situations.
Officers in Washington state are bound from asking about “an individual’s immigration or citizenship status, or place of birth unless there is a connection between such information and an investigation into a violation of state or local criminal law.”
“If somebody calls 911, needs help, we don’t, and will not, ask any immigration status … We will treat every person that comes to us the exact same,” Loudermilk said. “We’re going to address the needs that they’re calling us for and then be on our way.”
Schram said his department is just enforcing Washington state law.
“If we’re interacting with somebody that has violated the law, or something like that as far as Washington state is concerned, that’s what we act upon,” he said. “Their status, whether they’re here legally or not — we do not ask that question.”
Schram’s message to the community: “If you need us, we’re here — call us. We’re not looking for people that are undocumented. We want to make sure that our community is safe, and then if they need help, they call us, because all we care about is their safety and security.”
Community response
Muro said the Immigrant Rights Coalition's most reliable network of support right now is the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, or WAISN, which is based in Seattle. They have a deportation defense hotline.
“This is a phone number that folks can call if they are being detained or they have a family member that's being detained or somebody that's being detained, and it connects them quickly with an attorney to kind of walk-through steps on what to do,” Muro said.
The coalition has resources that they can share with people in print or over the phone, including letting people know their rights such as remaining silent and not opening the door if there is a federal agent outside.
Muro also noted that it is expensive to hire an attorney to help with immigration status. The coalition started preparing to help people with that a while ago, in anticipation of the Trump administration coming into office.
“We're talking about an already super vulnerable population that's working the most low-paying jobs who are being asked to pay this money so that they can work with an attorney to fix their status,” Muro said.
She said the coalition has been helping a lot of local people financially so they could at least have some sort of documentation as soon as possible, even if it just got the process started.
Muro also said the support from the community, law enforcement and local government had been overwhelmingly helpful.
“We convened a ton of community leaders right after the election in the month of December to just kind of start this conversation,” Muro said. “We heard a lot of really positive responses like, ‘If federally something comes down the pike, we as a community are going to stick to what Washington law is,’ and we're hopeful that remains.”
Public schools
Washington public schools have been instructed not to initiate engagement with federal immigration authorities or share student information unless it is demanded by a court order or judicial warrant.
The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction released a guidance on Thursday, Jan. 23, outlining schools’ obligations and practices when it comes to protecting immigrant students.
“We are receiving a lot of questions and concerns from schools, families, legislators, community members and other partners,” State Superintendent Chris Reykdal said. “As we monitor the actions of the new federal administration, I want to be clear: Washington state is and will remain a state that is unequivocally committed to supporting all of our students and their families.”
Both Walla Walla and College Place school districts’ policies align with the OSPI’s guidance, which said no student would be denied enrollment or continuing enrollment based on immigration status. School services will be provided to all students, regardless of status, and schools have no legal authority to enforce U.S. immigration laws.
“If anyone attempts to engage in immigration enforcement on or near school grounds, school staff shall immediately alert and direct the person to the school principal or authorized designee,” the guidance said.
If a federal immigration enforcement agency requests to talk with a student or enter school grounds, school staff will request a court order or judicial warrant, which will then be reviewed by the superintendent or legal counsel.
College Place Superintendent Jim Fry sent a note to all district staff at the beginning of the month that said the district was working with community leaders preparing for the potential impacts of President Trump’s focus on immigration.
“CPPS's stance is nonpolitical but aligns with our legal obligation as a public school district in Washington state to educate all children and allow them to do so in a safe environment,” Fry said. “In short, our policy does not allow for our schools to be used for immigration enforcement."
The full guidance from the OSPI is available at tinyurl.com/c2wyaack.
More information
The Walla Walla Immigrant Rights Coalition's confidential hotline is 509-520-3834. The Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network hotline is 1-844-724-3737.
Loryn Kykendall and Erick Bengel, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin