Homeland Security Says Immigration Agents Weren't At Queens School For 'Enforcement Action'

A federal immigration agent's presence at a Queens school was discussed yesterday by Mayor Bill de Blasio and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. De Blasio was visiting Washington D.C. on Monday, and met with Kelly for almost an hour. His office released this description of their conversation: "The Secretary said that the agents were not there for enforcement action and that DHS does not target schools in such efforts. The Mayor made clear that the agents’ presence was nevertheless non-conducive to the learning environment and inconsistent with fair and effective immigration and education policy."

Two federal immigration agents from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services apparently visited P.S. 58 in Queens on Thursday, but were turned away by a school safety agent and an administrator. The Department of Education's policy is that "non-local law enforcement officers, including ICE officers, may only obtain access to school facilities or students in school under one of the following circumstances: with consent; with proper warrants; or under exigent circumstances."

The federal agents did not have a warrant.

A USCIS spokeswoman Katie Tichacek said, "I must emphasize that the purpose of the visit was to verify certain facts about the student's enrollment in relation to a request for an immigration benefit. At no time did the officers ask to see or speak with the student, who was not the subject of the administrative inquiry." She also said, "Although school visits are not routine in these circumstances, they are not unprecedented."

The readout of the mayor's meeting with Kelly also says "they pledged to work together to ensure that the DHS investigative work in question was performed remotely and without the presence of federal immigration agents in New York City schools" and stressed the "importance of the relationship between police officers and the city’s immigrant community in securing record-low crime rates." Finally, "in addition to discussing their shared allegiance to the Boston Red Sox, the Mayor and Secretary agreed to meet again in New York City in the coming months."