OMAHA, Nebraska – Mayor Jean Stothert and Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer emphasized Tuesday that they do not want the city’s residents to be afraid of their police officers.
Both spoke at a news conference Tuesday afternoon to emphasize that OPD policies would remain unchanged if federal authorities increased enforcement of immigration status in communities across the country.
Omaha’s current policy states that, while those who commit crimes are subject to federal laws, OPD officers will not seek out individuals to inquire about their legal status — and that no one calling 911 for emergency assistance will be asked about their immigration status.
“Our policy on immigration enforcement is pretty much right down the middle,” Schmaderer said during Tuesday’s news conference.
He emphasized the importance of community relationships in the OPD’s policing strategy. Increasing the level of aggression would only impede other policing efforts.
“As chief, if I was to give the mission that all my officers will become agents of the federal government and have a role in enforcing immigration and status in the country, I have just just created a bed of unreported victims, a bed of unrecorded crimes,” Schamderer told the press.
Victims of crime and witnesses, whether citizens or not, must be able to report incidents to police, according to Schmaderer.
“If you’re in fear of your immigration status, that will go unreported,” he told the audience. “I don’t want a bed of domestic violence or child abuse or anything of that nature occurring in our city.”
“We feel that we have an appropriate blend right down the middle on this subject, and that’s where I intend to stay.”
The best approach, he said, was to delegate immigration enforcement to federal authorities, with Omaha Police continuing to provide immigration status information for arrested suspects and officers assisting federal agencies in locating dangerous suspects, as they have done.
“We’ve come with this message a few times in the past,” the chief said, noting that the city’s YouTube video, which was also shared on the mayor’s social media, was created in recent days.
Schmaderer and Stothert said national reports over the weekend prompted them to send out a message — in both English and Spanish — to alleviate some community concerns.
“We were hearing some fear, some confusion, not really knowing if this was going to affect Omaha, or what our Omaha Police Department was expected to do,” she told me. “…We do not want anyone to be afraid. If you are a victim or a witness to a crime, we want you to feel comfortable calling 911, and the Omaha Police will assist you without regard to your legal status.”
Schmaderer stated that the message has not changed, but it does need to be repeated on occasion.
“We are here to clarify that message every chance we get because we think it’s that important to our community especially right now,” according to him on Tuesday.
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