ICE says it coordinated with school, governor’s office after arrest at Baltimore school

BALTIMORE (WBFF) — A chaotic immigration arrest on the front lawn of Commodore John Rodgers Elementary/Middle School has sparked outrage from Maryland leaders and renewed questions about federal enforcement actions on school grounds.

Video from the scene captured a person shouting, “You cannot do this to him this is school property. This is school property,” as ICE agents took down a man outside the school.

ALSO READ | Officials seek answers as ICE action at Baltimore school raises questions over policy

Senate President Bill Ferguson condemned the arrest, saying, “Its truly unconscionable and unbelievable.”

On social media, Ferguson criticized ICE for violating a pledge not to take actions on school grounds.

In a statement, the governor called the incident “deeply disturbing” and promised to determine how it could happen.

Immigration officials, however, described a different sequence of events. ICE said in a statement that “ICE leadership coordinated with school officials and the Governor’s Office to ensure the situation was resolved safely.”

Agents said their pursuit of Jesus Acevado Sanchez began at another location away from the school, where they allege Sanchez resisted arrest, evaded law enforcement and dragged an ICE agent with his vehicle.

In video from the incident, an officer yells at onlookers, “He just ran over an officer a few minutes ago ma’am, if you don’t mind. He literally just hit an officer.”

The incident ended at the school Thursday morning, where Sanchez and another woman were taken into custody.

The new details became a topic of discussion on talk radio, with one speaker saying, “Now if all of these things are true. I understand.”

Another caller urged caution before drawing conclusions, saying, “Before we jump out, Mr. Mayor Brandon Scott and Bill Ferguson, why don’t we get more information?”

An ICE spokesperson reiterated the agency’s position, saying in a statement that “ICE does not target schools, but we will not allow criminals to hide in our nations schools and put the safety of children at risk.”

For school bus driver Jude Castellanos, who watched what happened, the impact on students could linger.

“I know the laws and everything we’ve got to respect the laws but in the schools, there’s children. They’re going to be traumatized,” Castellanos said.