CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va — Elected officials who manage the operations of the Chesterfield County Courthouse are speaking out after federal agents have made several visits to the courthouse for immigration enforcement in recent weeks.
Clerk of the Chesterfield Circuit Court Amanda Pohl called the activity an "atrocity" in an interview with CBS 6 Friday.
“Having this kind of action happen inside the court building is very frustrating, because it shows that courts are not a safe place for folks," Pohl said.
In June, ICE detained fifteen people over a four-day period, which garnered support from top Republican leaders including Governor Glenn Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares and criticism from activists, immigration attorneys, and some Democratic elected officials.
According to records provided by Chesterfield Sheriff Karl Leonard, a majority of the individuals detained were in General District Court for traffic violations.
“It's terrible to see people who just came in to have their day in court, pay their fines and fees, take care of minor traffic incidents, and then they're being taken from their families, and their families are not expecting that," Pohl said.
This week, ICE returned to the courthouse looking for three more people, according to Leonard.
One defendant, charged with driving under the influence and driving without a license, was present for his hearing. He was then detained by ICE.
The other two individuals ICE wanted to interview did not show up for their hearings.
Pohl believes ICE's presence has caused a chilling effect of deterring people from showing up to court. Leonard acknowledged the same, saying it's "evident that that's happening."
Commonwealth's Attorney Erin Barr expressed a similar concern in a previous statement saying she was worried that some victims may "see our courthouse as a place to fear" which "prevents them from seeking safety and protection from our law enforcement and justice system."
Pohl said her office has received phone calls from members of the public questioning whether they should come to the courthouse to handle even minor business like obtaining a marriage license.
“We can't advise them not to come. What we advise them is to seek advice from a lawyer and look at the resources that we have available. But we're getting people who are scared, and they're saying, 'Do I even come to court?'" Pohl said.
For those folks, she said staff are helping them complete tasks, such as paying fees, over the phone and through mail, but she said it shouldn't be that way.
“The work that Chesterfield has done, the work that our police have done, the work that the sheriff's department has done, to try to build some credibility within those communities, ICE coming into the courthouse and taking people is going to destroy that credibility immediately, and it's going to take a long time to build that back up," Pohl said.
Sheriff Leonard, who is responsible for overseeing security at the courthouse, said the detainments have put him and other officials in a tough spot when it comes to managing relationships with those community members.
“It’s hard for a lot of us, because, as we're trying to build those bonds, external things are happening that kind of tear those bonds down again," Leonard said in an interview Friday.
But ultimately, there's not much the sheriff, commonwealth's attorney, or circuit court clerk — constitutional officers with specific duties clearly denied by the law — can do about it.
Pohl said her staff, who maintain court records, have been approached by ICE agents requesting records. She has directed her staff to treat ICE's requests the same way they would with any member of the general public.
Leonard said federal agents have every right to carry out their duties in a public space, and they have made appearances at the courthouse from time to time over the past ten years.
“The fact that ICE comes to the courthouse and detains people that are here is nothing new in itself. What is new is the numbers, right? When they would come in the past, it'd be one person. We might not see them again for another couple months. What happened in June, though, we saw for the first time, the large numbers— trying to interview 12 people, 14 people, and actually taking six out one day, six out another day.”
Leonard said his office has typically received notice of ICE's planned presence the night before the agents arrive.
In an effort to keep detainments private, he coordinated a system in which deputies bring a defendant to a side hallway following their hearing where ICE waits to interview them.
“We worked with ICE to say, ‘Listen, I can't stop you from coming in the building. That's fine, but we would like you to do these detainments out of sight, out of mind, where we can control the situation and it's safe for everybody, including the individual you're taking into custody,'" he said.
He said ICE has not detained every person interviewed and credited the agency for its "due diligence."
Leonard added his deputies take no part in the physical detainment of an individual.
However, he confirmed one of his deputies was caught on video this week holding an umbrella over an agent's face as they went outside, where people with cameras were watching, to place a detainee into a vehicle. He said that was not acceptable, and the deputy got in trouble.
When asked for his position on the recent events, Leonard said, “I’m simply here to enforce the laws that are on the book, whatever those laws are, whatever the Constitution says.”
Pohl offered a more pointed stance, sending this message to the federal government: "You're not accomplishing your goal. You're not keeping people safe. You're, in fact, making people less safe, because folks are not coming into the court to testify as witnesses or victims."
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