Enterprise Police Say Operations Targeted Violent Crime, Not Immigrants, as Hispanic Residents Voice Fear

ENTERPRISE, Ala. — The Enterprise Police Department said Friday that a series of joint law enforcement operations this week targeted violent crime and illegal guns, not immigrants, after social media videos of nighttime stops left some members of the city’s Hispanic community questioning whether it is safe to go out — including to vote in Tuesday’s general election.

Videos shared online appeared to show officers stopping people Wednesday and Thursday nights in the Enterprise area and questioning them about their immigration status. The videos spread quickly, and some residents said the stops left them afraid to leave home days before the Nov. 3 election.

What the police department said

In a statement released Friday, the department said the activity was aimed at reducing violence and was not directed at any particular “race, ethnicity, religion, neighborhood or socioeconomic status.”

“Recent joint law enforcement operations involving the Enterprise Police Department, the Coffee County Sheriff’s Office, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) have focused on violent crime, illegal firearms, repeat offenders, and protecting the safety of our residents,” the department said.

The statement said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was not brought into Enterprise to conduct sweeps or to pursue people who are in the country illegally.

“We understand that some residents may have questions or concerns about these operations,” the department said. “We remain committed to protecting constitutional rights, maintaining the highest professional standards, and ensuring that concerns regarding law enforcement conduct can be addressed through appropriate channels.”

The department’s statement did not say how many people were stopped or arrested during the operations or what charges, if any, were filed.

A resident’s account

Francisco Amaya, a 25-year-old U.S. citizen, said he had just left a Planet Fitness on Wednesday night and was sitting in his car when officers, including immigration agents, surrounded him.

“I just opened the door, and as soon as I opened the door, they just handcuffed me without no explanation or anything,” Amaya said.

He said he was held for about 15 minutes before officers determined he was a citizen and released him. Officers told him they believed he was with a man parked in the next space who was refusing orders to get out of his vehicle, Amaya said. He said officers broke that car’s window and pulled the man out, and that the man was also a U.S. citizen.

Amaya said he believes the timing of the operations, days before an election, was meant to discourage Hispanic residents from voting. “I think because it’s close to voting, and I think what they’re doing is just to scare people not to vote and not even step out, where they live,” he said.

‘We have fear of going out’

Amaya’s mother, Yesi Ramos, said she and many people she knows are afraid to leave their homes, even though they are in the country legally or are U.S. citizens.

“We have fear of going out because we know we’re being targeted,” Ramos said. “And then, even though I’m here legally, I’m still scared because I’ve seen so many videos on social media of people getting ran over, shot by ICE, immigration law enforcement. So like, it doesn’t matter if we’re here legally or not.”

Both said the week’s events have made them more anxious about going to the polls on Election Day.

The national backdrop

Immigration enforcement activity has increased across the country in the run-up to the midterm elections. Wendy Weiser of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, a nonpartisan law and policy institute, has said the goal of the surge has been to “intimidate voters.” President Donald Trump’s administration has said it does not intend to station ICE agents at polling places.

Enterprise, a Coffee County city of about 31,000 in the Wiregrass, is the hometown or residence of several prominent Alabama officials, including U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, U.S. Rep. Barry Moore, who is running for U.S. Senate, and state Rep. Rhett Marques, the Republican nominee in the 2nd Congressional District race against U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures.

The agencies involved

• Enterprise Police Department: The city’s municipal police force.
• Coffee County Sheriff’s Office: The county’s chief law enforcement agency, which also operates the county jail.
• Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA): The state agency that includes the Alabama State Troopers and the State Bureau of Investigation, which frequently assists local departments.
• U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE): The federal agency within the Department of Homeland Security that enforces immigration laws.

Know your voting rights

Only U.S. citizens may vote in Alabama elections. Federal and state law prohibit intimidating, threatening or coercing anyone for voting or attempting to vote. Eligible voters who encounter problems at the polls can ask a poll worker or the precinct’s chief inspector for help, contact their county probate judge’s office, which administers elections in Alabama, or reach the Alabama Secretary of State’s elections division.

The nonpartisan Election Protection hotline also takes reports from voters at 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), with Spanish-language assistance available at 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682).

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3. Voters must bring a valid photo ID and vote at their assigned precinct, which can be confirmed through the Secretary of State’s website.