In September, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement launched Operation Midway Blitz — a series of immigration raids in the Chicago area.
A statement from the US Department of Homeland Security said 146 truck drivers were detained by ICE during a raid that was conducted along Indiana highways as part of Operation Midway Blitz. The Indiana State Police partnered with ICE under what's known as a 287(g) agreement that allows local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration laws.
Michigan Immigrant Rights Center spokesperson Christine Sauve said that the operation targeted foreign-born commercial truck drivers along I-94 by apprehending and detaining them after they pulled into weigh stations.
“They put their faith in our immigration system, participated in these lawful pathways, were following the rules — even to the point of the rules of the road, entering weigh stations like they’re supposed to — and having the rug pulled out from under them," Sauve said.
Sauve said MIRC has spoken with many drivers detained in the operation who entered the country under now-canceled asylum programs such as Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans.
"It affected many drivers who were lawfully present, but out of status. So, what this means is that they entered the US through a lawful program, then under this federal administration, the rules abruptly changed midway through their process," Sauve said.
Although a statement from DHS insinuated that all of the detained drivers had non-immigration-related criminal records, Sauve said most of the drivers MIRC spoke with had no criminal record and had made every attempt to obtain legal status through the proper channels.
Though Michigan State Police spokesperson Lieutenant Duwayne Robinson confirmed that MSP doesn't partner with ICE and said they haven't been made aware of an ICE presence at Michigan weigh stations, Sauve said drivers traveling to and from Michigan along the I-94 corridor can still encounter ICE at weigh stations in Indiana.
“What they reported was that they pulled into weigh stations, again, following the rules of the road as they were trained to do, and were subsequently arrested and detained by state police and ICE," Sauve said.
Sauve said MIRC has only heard confirmed reports of ICE conducting operations at weigh stations in Indiana and Illinois, not Michigan. But she noted ICE would have the authority to conduct checks at Michigan weigh stations. She said MIRC has know your rights materials available in many languages.
"We encourage truck drivers and really all non-citizens to become familiar with their rights and prepare for those possible enforcement scenarios," Sauve said. "Preparation is really key and it's important to make sure that you have your documents gathered in a safe place at home so a loved one can assist if you are detained."
She said the organization has heard from drivers held at ICE detention facilities in Michigan, and emphasized that MIRC’s contact information is posted at all Michigan detention facilities and that all of MIRC's services are free.
WMUK reached out to DHS to seek comment for this story but did not receive a response. WMUK also reached out to ICE and received an automated out-of-office reply from an employee. The reply gave instructions to send the request to an email address that was identical to the address WMUK initially emailed.
