NEW ORLEANS (NewsNation) — Like previous immigration enforcement operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and North Carolina, the increased presence of federal officers and agents in New Orleans has drawn mixed reactions among elected leaders, residents and law enforcement.
New Orleans City Council meetings, like the one held Wednesday, have attracted demonstrators protesting the immigration crackdown. One protester was removed from Wednesday’s meeting, as some of those opposing the immigration enforcement operation outside of the government building told NewsNation that federal agents are creating an atmosphere of terror and fear.
Opposition is being voiced around the region as a poll conducted by JMC Analytics found almost 80% of 500 Orleans Parish residents who were asked about the operation opposed the effort. The pushback is coming from residents, even though much of the enforcement operations are taking place outside of New Orleans proper.
Yet, U.S. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, who is overseeing the operation that involves more than 200 federal officers and agents, says the majority of people Border Patrol encounters say they are glad something is being done to remove dangerous criminal migrants from the streets.
However, just 11% of respondents indicated they strongly favor the federal crackdown. Yet, when broken down by political loyalties, 72% of Republicans polled favor the presence of federal agents while 77% of Democratic respondents are strongly opposed, polling results show.
With Louisiana Republican Gov. Jeff Landry and New Orleans Mayor-elect Helena Moreno, a Democrat, at odds over the crackdown, law enforcement officers assigned to patrol local streets are also not on the same page.
In a border state that already had an active Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol presence before the larger-scale immigration enforcement operation began last week, Louisiana state troopers are already cooperating with federal immigration agents and officers.
As part of that effort, troopers will be in marked state police vehicles “to ensure a visible and coordinated presence” and will “take immediate action on all state-level criminal violations involving the assault or battery of any law enforcement,” Louisiana State Police Superintendent Col. Robert Hodges said.
New Orleans Police, Louisiana AG disagree on department’s role
However, with the state police and several local police departments that have agreements in place to cooperate with federal agents and officers, the New Orleans Police Department remains an outlier.
Last week, New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said it is not accurate that her officers have not cooperated with immigration-related matters. Kirkpatrick issued a statement after being informed about a letter sent from Louisiana’s Republican Attorney General, Liz Murrill, accusing the department of following so-called “sanctuary” policies.
Since 2016, New Orleans police have followed a department policy that restricts officers from assisting state and federal immigration law enforcement officers in most immigration enforcement. The only exceptions involve matters of public safety or instances when city cops are needed to help execute a court-issued search warrant.
That policy is based on a 2013 consent decree that prohibits such cooperation with enforcing federal immigration laws. That decree was issued to address previous issues with corruption and unconstitutional behavior, including racial profiling, within New Orleans’ police department.
In the letter sent to Kirkpatrick last week, Murrill wrote that by continuing to follow that policy, the New Orleans Police Department is violating state law.
In her own response to Murrill, Kirkpatrick wrote the department has been actively working to finalize 37 remaining policies that were previously submitted for federal approval but were never acted upon. Among those is a draft immigration policy that was submitted for review in November 2024.
Kirkpatrick urged Murrill to review policy and make any necessary changes that would bring the department into full compliance with state law.
Once done, Kirkpatrick said she will move to approve the policy and says she is working to “fully cooperate” with Murrill. A police department spokesperson declined to provide NewsNation with a copy of the draft policy since it had not yet been approved.
A Murrill spokesperson told NewsNation this week that the attorney general’s lengthy letter “speaks for itself” and added that New Orleans police need to “fully cooperate” with Border Patrol and ICE.
Meanwhile, 23 local police departments with active 287 (g) agreements in place with the federal government say they are ready and willing to assist in an operation in which migrant arrests have been lagging amid goals set by the Department of Homeland Security to make 5,000 arrests.
New Orleans city councilman Eugene Green told NewsNation on Wednesday that the city wants to work with the federal government after receiving previous assistance in times of need. Government officials assisted after Hurricane Katrina, and National Guard troops were deployed to New Orleans after the terrorist attack that killed 15 people, including the suspect, and injured 35 others on January 1.
Green, a Democrat, said that local leaders have not been told how long the federal operation will last, but said in many instances, information has been lacking.
“We’re asking for communication and cooperation,” Green said. “It’s pretty simple to be very honest with you. We want to help, we want to identify anyone who is a criminal who is a threat to public safety. But on the other hand, we want to keep the public safe and keep them informed.”