ASHTABULA — Members of the city’s Hispanic population say many in their community are afraid that city police will target them for deportation following an incident last Friday involving what are apparently undocumented Mexican immigrants.

The incident grabbed the attention of Hispanas Organizadas de Lake y Ashtabula (HOLA), an advocacy group with a presence in Ashtabula. The group called a meeting of the Ashtabula Hispanic community Monday evening to show their solidarity for Ana, a 17-year-old girl from Mexico who was stopped by police as she rode on the handlebars of a bicycle being driven by her boyfriend, identified by police as “Mr. Cruz,” age unknown.

The male fled when they were stopped by police, leaving Ana to deal with the officer’s questions.

Speaking through a translator, Ana said police questioned her immigration status and that of her 7-month-old baby, who was riding in a car in front of them. Police eventually went to her house, where she was able to provide documentation of residence.

Veronica Dahlberg, executive director of HOLA, said Ana’s story reinforces a growing con-

cern in the Latino population. Immigrants worry that even when they are stopped for the smallest traffic offense and police discover they are undocumented, they will be reported to federal authorities, which can lead to deportation and separation from their U.S.-born children. At the very least, it can result in thousands of dollars in legal fees if they choose to fight the federal action.

Camilo J. Villa, projects coordinator for HOLA, said the idea of any person being asked for immigration status during a traffic stop is “for me incomprehensible, and it’s also illegal.”

About 40 members of the Hispanic community met with Villa, Dahlberg and Stanley Miller, president of the Cleveland branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Monday evening at the La Guadalupana grocery store on Center Street. The meeting was an opportunity to discuss the issue, hear Ana’s story and express their solidarity.

“We’re all going to stand behind Ana,” Dahlberg said.

The incident

The incident occurred around 11 p.m. Friday in the city’s Jefferson Avenue neighborhood.

Ashtabula City Police Chief Robert Stell said police were looking for two subjects, one of them a Hispanic male, who had been seen entering a vehicle on Park Avenue. The city has experienced a rash of breaking-and-entering incidents. The sketchy description police received stated one of the subjects was pushing a bicycle.

Police patrolling the area came upon Cruz and Ana, but Stell said the couple started to play a game of “cat and mouse” with police. A unit was finally able to stop them, at which point Cruz took off running. An officer pursued him, and several other units were called to assist. Stell briefly looked for the subject, as well.

With help from an interpreter, police learned Ana had no documentation for herself. She claimed her baby had been born in a Painesville hospital, but she could not provide a birth certificate or other documentation of his birth.

Dahlberg said police eventually went to the residence, where Ana and her boyfriend, who fled the scene, live. A letter in the mailbox was used to verify the address, although the name on the envelope was different from the name Ana gave police.

Stell said the incident was reported to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CPB) in Erie, Pa., but Ashtabula police has not heard back from the agency.

“We’ve done nothing more with the matter other than make (CPB) aware,” Stell said.

The city solicitor has the report and will make the decision whether to file an arrest warrant for Cruz on the charge of fleeing and eluding a police officer.

The chief said Ana’s residence is not under surveillance and police are not continuing their search Cruz.

“It would be highly unlikely, unless there’s an arrest warrant, that we’d sit at his house and wait for him,” Stell said.

Stell said police simply wanted to question the girl and her companion, but the subject’s decision to run and Ana’s lack of documentation raised questions that begged for answers. He said the subjects were “acting suspicious,” regardless of their motives for doing so.

“We are simply saying there are a lot of suspicious things with this whole situation,” Stell said.

While HOLA is casting the event as proof that the department has a policy of using traffic stops as a gateway for deportation, Stell says the circumstances just don’t fit the allegations.

“If they wanted to stay out of trouble with the police department, they did everything wrong,” he said. “They got on a bicycle and fled the police department. What do they think we are going to do?”

Policy

About a year ago, Stell worked with City Solicitor Michael Franklin to come up with a policy on how the police department would handle situations where it is determined that a person of interest is undocumented. Rather than make it a policy of “thou shalt not … ,” they first determined that an undocumented person should not feel intimidated by police when he or she becomes a victim of a crime.

“It’s not our wish to have them deported when they come in as victims of crime,” Stell said. “We want you to be able to come to the police department, regardless of status.”

However, several who spoke at La Guadalupana said fear of deportation keeps them from reporting crimes.

“The first thing they ask you is ‘Are you legal?’” said one those attending. “We’re so scared. Whatever we see happen, we’re not going to tell (police).”

Stell said if someone who is illegal is charged with a crime, the department will inform the appropriate federal agency of the situation and let it decide whether action needs to be taken. He says Dahlberg would have the department ignore federal law altogether, something he cannot do in good conscience, given that there are cases where the illegal suspect could pose a threat to the community.

“I think we would be remiss not to contact Border Patrol or (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) to have them look into the matter,” Stell said.

Stell said the department does not have the desire, time nor expertise to take on the work of federal immigration-law enforcement.

“We’ve never had a policy, and never will have a policy, of rounding up people who are undocumented just to get rid of them,” Stell said. “Justice is better served by helping the victims, advocating for the victims, not trying to see if we can get you thrown out of the United States,” he added.

Feeling unsafe

Stell has been with the department 14 years, and he can think of only “a handful” of cases— a half-dozen or so — in which police have contacted CPB or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to report undocumented subjects. By contrast, by HOLA’s own estimates, there are about 500 undocumented persons in the area.

Stell said the overwhelming majority of the local Hispanic community members is hardworking and does not cause problems for law enforcement. That’s a sentiment expressed by both HOLA and members of the community, yet that continues to get lost in incidents.

“We’re not criminals,” said an adult male member of the community, through a translator. “We’re just here, working for a better life for our families.”

The problem, says Villa, ultimately rests with lawmakers who refuse to address the immigration issue, a political hot potato.

“Our community needs to feel safe until they are made legal,” Villa said. “Right now, there is no recourse for us to become legal.”

Dahlberg said Ana does not feel safe. As of Monday evening, she had not returned to work, and Ana said through a translator, she probably would quit.

“She’s too scared, too terrified,” Dahlberg said. “Since she was stopped, she does not want to leave the house.”