PITTSBURGH — Confusion over Pittsburgh Police interacting with ICE agents has led to a new policy.
Officers were confused during an incident that happened near the police station in Allentown.
ICE agents struggled with a suspect and Pittsburgh Police officers did not know whether to get involved or not.
Pittsburgh Police Chief Jason Lando has laid it out in writing and Chief Investigator Rick Earle exclusively got hold of that policy.
The written policy says that officers “...may intervene in an encounter involving federal immigration agents only when necessary to address an immediate threat to life, safety or public order.”
Once a scene is under control, officers must back off.
It’s similar to what Lando told the city council during his confirmation hearing earlier this year.
“We have a legal and moral obligation to respond, assess the situation and then get out of there as quickly as possible,” Lando said.
Before implementing the policy, Lando got input from the ACLU and various immigration advocacy groups like Casa San Jose.
Casa San Jose Executive Director Monica Ruiz spoke with Earle about the policy.
Earle: Some of your thoughts about the policy now that we have it in black and white; are you on board with it?
Ruiz: Absolutely, I think the fact that we were able to talk through some of this with the chief of police really reflects his leadership.
Ruiz supports the new policy, saying, “The police should focus on their job and I think it’s very clear what they are trying to do.”
Earle: It’s public safety?
Ruiz: Public safety, yep, for everyone around.
City council member Deb Gross, who, along with Erika Strassburger and Barb Warwick, pushed legislation banning city employees from cooperating with ICE, also spoke about the policy.
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Gross: Once the situation is stable, our officers are to disengage. I feel like that’s what people want to see.
Earle: You are good with that?
Gross: It seems like the right policy.
Sources tell 11 Investigates that the chief reviewed the bodycam video from the ICE encounter outside of the police station in March and that no officers were disciplined for failing to intervene.
Channel 11 has reached out to ICE and the police officers’ union, but has not heard back yet.
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