Policy Number: I 0029.2
FEA
Number: 306-112-002b
Office
of
tht• Director
l .S. Ocpn
rtm
cnl of
ll
omeland Securil)
500
12
th
Sln:Ct. sw
Wa
shington. D.
C.
20536
U.S. Immigration
and
Customs
Enforcement
OCT
2 4
2011
MEMORANDUM
FOR:
Fi
e
ld
Office Dir
ec
tors
Spec
ial
Agents
in
Char
ge
Chief
Co
unsel
F
ROM:
John Morton
Director
SUBJECT:
Enforcement Actions at or Focu
se
d on
Se
nsitive Locations
Purpose
This memorandum
setS
forth
fmmi
graL
ion and Customs
Enfo
rceme
nt
(I
CE)
po
licy regarding
ce
rtain e
nf
orceme
nt
act
ion
s
by
ICE o
ffi
ce
rs
and
agents at or focused on sens
iti
ve
locations. This
po
licy is designed to ensure that
th
ese enforcement
ac
ti
ons
do
not occur at nor are focu
se
d on
sens
iti
ve locations s
uch
as sch
oo
ls and churches
unl
ess (a)
ex
igent c
ir
c
um
stances
ex
i
st~
(b) other
law enforceme
nt
ac
ti
ons
have
l
ed
of
fi
ce
rs
to a sensitive location as described in the
..
E:rcep
1ion
s
10
1he
General
Rul
e'
' sec
ti
on
of
thi
s policy memorandum, or (c) prior approval is obtained. This
policy supersedes a
ll
prior agency policy
on
this subject.
1
Definitions
The enforceme
nt
act
ion
s covered
by
Lni
s policy are (I) arrest
s;
(2)
int
erview
s;
(3) searches; and
(
4)
fo
r purposes
of
immigration enforcement o
nl
y,
s
urveillru1ce.
Ac
ti
ons not covered
by
this
po
li
cy
in
c
lud
e
ac
ti
ons such as obta
i11in
g records. d
oc
um
e
nt
s and similar
mat
erials
from
officials
or e
mpl
oyees, providing no
tic
e
to
offic
ial
s or e
mpl
oyees,
se
rving s
ubp
oena
s,
engaging
in
Student
a
nd
Exchange
Visi
tor
Pro
gram (SEVP) compliance
and
ce
rtification visits. or participating
in
official functions or community meetings.
The sens
iti
ve locations covered
by
lhi
s policy
in
cl
ud
e.
but are
not
limit
ed
to,
the
following:
1
Memorandum
from
Julie
L.
Myers. Assistant Secretary,
U.S.
Immigration and Cus
tom
s Enforcement. ·'Field
Guidance
on
Enforcement Actions or Investigative
Ac
tivities
At
or Near Sensitive Community Locations" I
0029.1
(July 3. 2008): Memorandum
from
Marcy
M.
Forman. Director. Office
of
In
vestiga
ti
ons. "Enforcement
Ac
ti
ons
at
Schools" (December
26,
2007): Memorandum
from
Jame
s
A.
Puleo.
Im
migration
nnd
Na
t
ural
ization Service (I
NS)
Acting Assoc
iate
Co
mmissioner, ·'Enforcement Activities
at
Schools.
Pl
aces
of
Wors
hip.
or at funerals or o
th
er
religious ceremo
ni
es"
HQ
807
-P (May
17.
1993).
This policy docs
not
s
up
ersede
th
e requirements regarding arrests
at
sensitive locations
put
fonh
in
th
e
Vio
lence Aga
in
st
Women
Ac
t, sec Memorandum
from
J
ohn
P. Torres,
Dir
ec
tor
Office
of
Det
en
t
ion
and
Removal
Operations
and
Marcy
M.
Forman,
Director, Office
of
In
ves
tigation
s,
··Interim
Guidance Relating
to
Officer Procedure Following Enactment
of
VA
WA
2005 (January
22,
2007).
www
.i
ce
.g
ov
Enforcement Actions at
or
Focused on Sensitive Locations
Page2
• schools (including pre-schools, primary schools, secondary schools, post-secondary
schools up to and including colleges and universities, and other institutions
of
learning
such as vocational or trade schools);
• hospitals;
• churches, synagogues, mosques or other institutions
of
worship, such as buildings rented
for the purpose
of
religious services;
• the site
of
a funeral, wedding, or other public religious ceremony; and
• a site during the occurrence
of
a public demonstration, such as a march, rally or parade.
This is not an exclusive list, and ICE officers and agents shall consult with their supervisors
if
the location
of
a planned enforcement operation could reasonably be viewed as being at or near a
sensitive location. Supervisors should take extra care when assessing whether a planned
enforcement action could reasonably be viewed as causing significant disruption to the normal
operations
of
the sensitive location. ICE employees should also exercise caution. For example,
particular care should be exercised with any organization assisting children, pregnant women,
victims
of
crime or abuse, or individuals with significant mental or physical disabilities.
Agency Policy
General
Rule
Any planned enforcement action at or focused on a sensitive location covered by this policy must
have prior approval
of
one
of
the following officials: the Assistant Director
of
Operations,
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); the Executive Associate Director (EAD)
ofHSI;
the
Assistant Director for Field Operations, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO); or the
EAD
of
ERO. This includes planned enforcement actions at
or
focused on a sensitive location
which is part
of
a joint case led by another law enforcement agency. ICE will give special
consideration to requests for enforcement actions at or near sensitive locations
if
the only known
address
of
a target is at or near a sensitive location (e.g., a target's only known address is next to
a church
or
across the street from a school).
Exceptions
to
the
General
Rule
This policy is meant to ensure that ICE officers and agents exercise sound judgment when
enforcing federal law at or focused on sensitive locations and make substantial efforts to avoid
unnecessarily alarming local communities. The oolicy is not intended to categorically prohibit
lawful enforcement operations when there is an immediate need for enforcement action as
outlined below. ICE officers and agents may carry out an enforcement action covered by this
policy without prior approval from headquarters when one
of
the following exigent
circumstances exists:
• the enforcement action involves a national security or terrorism matter;
• there is an imminent risk
of
death, violence,
or
physical harm to any person or property;
Enforcement Actions at or Focused on Sensitive Locations
Page3
• the enforcement action involves the immediate arrest
or
pursuit
of
a dangerous felon,
terrorist suspect, or any other individual(s) that present an imminent danger to public
safety; or
• there is an imminent risk
of
destruction
of
evidence material to an ongoing criminal case.
When proceeding with an enforcement action under these extraordinary circumstances, officers
and agents must conduct themselves as discretely as possible, consistent with officer and public
safety, and make every effort to limit the time at or focused on the sensitive location.
If, in the course
of
a planned or unplanned enforcement action that is not initiated at
or
focused
on a sensitive location, ICE officers or agents are subsequently led to
or
near a sensitive location,
barring an exigent need for an enforcement action, as provided above, such officers
or
agents
must conduct themselves in a discrete manner, maintain surveillance
if
no threat to officer safety
exists and immediately consult their supervisor prior to taking other enforcement action(s).
Dissemination
Each Field Office Director, Special Agent in Charge, and
Chief
Counsel shall ensure that the
employees under his or her supervision receive a copy
of
this policy and adhere to its provisions.
Training
Each Field Office Director, Special Agent in Charge, and
Chief
Counsel shall ensure that the
employees under his
or
her supervision are trained (both online and in-person/classroom)
annually on enforcement actions at or focused on sensitive locations.
No Private Right
of
Action
Nothing in this memorandum is intended to and may not be relied upon to create any right or
benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by any party in any administrative, civil, or
criminal matter.
This memorandum provides management guidance to ICE officers exercising discretionary law
enforcement functions, and does not affect the statutory authority
of
ICE officers and agents, nor
is it intended to condone violations
of
federal law at sensitive locations.
