By G. A. McNeeley
February 15, 2025 (El Cajon) - The El Cajon City Council, city staff, Heartland Fire Department and labor representatives came together on Wednesday to discuss possible short-term options, to staff a newly purchased fire engine, after a grant failed to fund.
Last year, the City Council explored options to augment fire and medical response coverage throughout the city. The Council directed staff to acquire an additional fire engine and seek a grant to fund the staff to operate that engine. Although the engine was acquired, the City was not successful in obtaining the grant. Their intent was to operate the engine (E-208) out of Station 8 as a full service vehicle, staffed with nine new employees. The grant would have paid for the majority of those employees.
On February 12, a workshop was held at the El Cajon City Council Chambers to discuss options that the City Council may wish to pursue in light of not receiving the grant. As part of its presentation, staff provided an update on data presented in 2024. The staff also presented short-term options for the City Council to consider.
Background Information
Staff reported that call volumes have been going up for the fire department in recent years.
For example, the fire department received 9,556 calls for response in 2003, 10,246 calls in 2008, 11,863 calls in 2013, 15,802 calls in 2018, 17,928 calls in 2023, and 17,574 calls in 2024.
Between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. are the busiest hours for Heartland Fire Department in El Cajon.
El Cajon’s turnout time is an average of 2:00 minutes, with a total response average of 9:22 minutes. You can compare this to La Mesa and Lemon Grove, who have a turnout time with an average of 2:17 minutes and 2:05 minutes respectively, and a total response average of 10:47 minutes and 9:28 minutes respectively.
Turnout Time & Total Response per Station: Station 6 (1:56 & 9.21), Station 7 (1:57 & 10:57), Station 8 (2:08 & 9:03), and Station 9 (1:58 & 10:23).
2,512 calls were made in 2023, and 2,567 calls were made in 2024, into the city. That is a change of +2.2%. 1,743 calls were made in 2023, and 1,895 were made in 2024, outside of the city. That is a change of +8.7%. That is a difference of 769 calls in 2023, and 672 calls in 2024, or 2.1 calls per day in 2023, and 1.8 calls per day in 2024.
Aid that was provided between 2023 and 2024 into the city included Station 8 (596 to 546), Station 9 (477 to 496), Station 6 (394 to 416), and Station 7 (276 to 437).
Aid that was provided between 2023 and 2024 to other cities includes San Miguel (1,430 to 1,487), Lakeside (674 to 710), La Mesa (277 to 254), and Santee (131 to 116).
The total number of calls made to Congregate Care Facilities in 2023 was 1,648, and the total number of calls made in 2024 was 1,506. That was an average of 4.5 calls per day in 2023, and an average of 4.1 calls per day in 2024. An average of 2.8 calls per day in 2023, and 2.6 calls per day in 2024 were made between 8 AM and 8 PM. An average of 1.2 calls per day in 2023, and 1.3 calls per day in 2024 were given to Engine 8, while an average of 3.2 calls per day in 2023, and an average of 2.8 calls per day in 2024 were given to Engine 6, Squad 6, and Truck 6. The daily average of homeless related calls was 3.7.
In 2023, 2,540 calls were Low/Mid Acuity Medical (Squad Assessable), 1,286 calls were Complex Medical, and 918 calls were either Fire Related, Traffic Related, Hazard Mitigation, Equipment/Supervisor Required, or Rescue.
The Response Comparison by Station in 2023 and 2024, included Station 6 (9,327 to 9,032), Station 8 (4,773 to 4,747), Station 9 (2,041 to 1,706), and Station 7 (1,566 to 1,170).
Short-Term & Long-Term Goals
The long-term goal for El Cajon is to build a fifth fire station. Their short-term objectives include continuing to reduce citywide calls by using regional nurse navigation, congregate care facilities, and education, and reducing Engine 8 calls to reduce the strain off of Station 6 and reducing the imbalance of Charge Aid.
Their first short-term coverage option was to add an Advanced AMR at Station 8. The shifts would be 12 hours, and it would operate similarly to Squad 6, but with contracted staff. This would cost $612,149, and reduce calls by 1,750 (or $350 per call, and 4.8 calls per day). This also wouldn't help with training coverage.
Their second short-term coverage option was fully staffing Engine 208, for 7 days a week, and 12 hour shifts. This would cost $1,733,000, and would reduce calls by 2,220 (or $788 per call, and 6 calls per day). This would also come with hybrid staffing challenges.
Their third short-term coverage option was fully staffing Engine 208, with 24 hour shifts. This would cost $2,610,000, and would reduce calls by 3,050 (or $856 per call, and 8.35 calls per day). This would mean that the city would no longer be eligible for the SAFER grant.
Their last short-term coverage option was the one-third option, which involved extra staff on the A-Shift, but no extra staff on B-Shift or C-Shift (they’d have the same amount they already have). However, this option is explained better, later in the article. This would cost $870,000, and reduce calls by 1,575 (or $552 calls per call, and 4.3 calls per day). This would also come with hybrid staffing challenges.
Where might funding come from for any of the above?
The staffer provided examples of some city expenditures, which might potentially be reduced:
Code Enforcement and Online Permitting (2 Planners) costs $750,000. One Forensics Lab costs $1 Million. Four Recreation Centers cost $1 Million. Reducing Non-Public Safety Positions by 5% costs $1 Million. Fire Department Overtime costs $2.64 Million. The Finance Department costs $2.86 Million.
Opinions
Simon Garcia, labor representative for “The Local 46,” has been with the city since 2005. He said that they were inclined to go with the full engine staffing with city firefighters (not contracted with AMR).
“However, as a labor group, we’d like to collaborate with the city council, city staff, and the fire department in order to get to that goal.”
They were not in favor of the AMR unit, stating that this would be a disservice to the community. An AMR unit doesn't have the same training, and they can’t cover for city firefighters during their unit training. Garcia added, “Our department is very highly trained, and provides the best service to our community, and that would be a decrease in service in our opinion.”
They were also not inclined to go with the 12-hour option, because it was 66% percent of the cost, with 50% of the coverage.
However, they were also willing to compromise, by going with some partial staffing, and to try to reapply for the SAFER grant. With this option, they would start out with giving extra coverage to just the A-Shift. The idea they suggested was to slowly be able to hire extra coverage for the B-Shift, and then eventually the C-Shift.
Most of the speakers were in favor of the full staffing option, and said that the biggest obstacle is funding. Without going back to voters, for a quarter percent tax increase, the other option would be 5% cut in staffing across many city departments.
The Council directed City Manager Graham Mitchell to “prepare a budget plan on how to fund the full staffing of Engine 208, with the realization that hiring one company at a time may be more of a reality than the three it requires to run 24/7/365,” according to Mitchell.
The City also hopes to reapply for the SAFER grant this fall.
Issue prompts drive to recall Councilman Phil Ortiz
By Alex Schorr and Miriam Raftery
Photo, left: Resolution opponents hold up sign denouncing hate and likening ICE roundups to “Gestapo” tactics
February 14, 2025 (El Cajon) – El Cajon’s City Council on Tuesday passed a controversial resolution allowing the city’s police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities and hand over any undocumented who has been convicted of a violent crime, as well as immigrants merely accused of a crime. The measure was introduced by Mayor Bill Wells, with backing of Councilmember Phil Ortiz and amendments by Councilman Steve Goble.
The meeting was contentious, sparked by numerous emotional outbursts, threats to recall Councilmember Ortiz for supporting the resolution, and playing of phone threats made against Councilmembers who voted against the measure previously.
Just two weeks ago, the Council rejected a similar proposal by a 3-2 vote, but reversed that action on Wednesday after Councilmember Goble switched sides.
“We’re not a sanctuary city,” said Goble, adding that the city should not hinder federal immigration authorities. He voiced support for deporting violent criminals, then revealed that he and Mayor Bill Wells held a meeting in December with Tom Homan, Pres Donald Trump’s border czar, on the issue.
California’s SB 54 law prohibits local law enforcement officers from participating in immigration sweeps and allows officers to only turn over undocumented immigrants to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if they have been convicted of certain serious felony crimes and if there is a judicial warrant. But the Trump administration is rounding up many immigrants who have not been convicted of crimes. Both the federal and state government have threatened legal actions against cities that comply or defy SB 54. Ultimately, Goble said he wants to see SB 54 amended to allow more cooperation between police and ICE.
The revised resolution includes several amendments, including one proposed by Goble asking the U.S. Attorney General to indemnify El Cajon and defend its police officers against state challenges over immigration actions. “I don’t want this conflict to punish our police officers,” said Goble, who insisted that the resolution is for the “sole purpose of getting rid of serious and violent criminals and to protect the people of El Cajon.”
But the resolution allows far more than that in authorizing police to handover people merely accused of a crime to ICE for deportation, including to foreign prisons or the infamous Guantanamo Bay “Gitmo” prison without any opportunity for due process or a trial.
In public comments, 46 speakers addressed the Council in heated testimony on both sides. Repeatedly, participants caused vocal disturbances, booed or cheered, and several made racially charged remarks. Several times, Mayor Wells called brief recesses due to disruptions, at one point threatening to “move this upstairs and leave you all out of it,” with only press allowed to be present.
Patricia Mondragon (photo, right), regional and policy manager for Alliance San Diego, said Trump’s promise to remove only violent criminals is “a lie. In city after city, nonoffenders are being detained and living in fear.” Mondragon warned that even some immigrants with legal status, such as those who lawfully requested asylum and are awaiting hearings, are being swept up by ICE.
Mondragon said the resolution’s backers have mischaracterized numbers provided by ICE last year, which suggested that 640,000 undocumented criminals in the U.S. are not detained. In fact, about a third of those have not been convicted of any crime. Of those convicted, many or perhaps most are already in prisons. That data spans decades, so some of those individuals may have died or left the U.S. on their own.
She believes Mayor Wells is “setting the city up as a litigant to challenge existing state law” and “asking the Attorney General for permission to violate state law.”
Many speakers characterized the resolution as racist and voiced fears that people with brown skin will face racial profiling.
Dr. Sergio Conte (photo, left) said he loves living in El Cajon, which has over 70 ethnic communities. He spoke of enjoying ethnic restaurants, walking his dog in the park among people of many cultures, and watching children from Afghanistan playing cricket. “We never had these problems until the Mayor divided us,” he said. Now we are white against brown people...Why? In 116 years we never had one councilmember to represent our community,” he said, noting that 35% of El Cajon voters are of Spanish heritage.
Then he directed his outrage at Councilmember Phil Ortiz—and issued a recall election threat. “We are going to recall you in 90 days, on March 10,” he told Ortiz, “because you were elected by the Latino community and you hate us...We are not criminals.” Ortiz represents a heavily Hispanic district; state law allows recall of an official 90 days after their current term of office begins.
But Mary Davis (photo, right) sees the resolution as “standing up for law and order.” She insists that isn’t racist. While opponents spoke of “kids in cages” in detention camps, Davis spoke of “kids in coffins.” She held up a photo of three children whom she said were killed in Sacramento by an undocumented father after he was arrested for a violent offense, then released.
Closer to home, RAD movement cofounder Sharie Finn says her child was raped and trafficked by an “illegal immigrant who is sitting in prison right now” but was not deported. She said the RAD movement’s volunteers have rescued children being trafficked locally. Finn supports the resolution because “this is one step to help our officers in getting violent offenders off the streets, period.”
Several speakers referenced the Lincoln-Reily act just passed by Congress and signed by President Trump. It mandates federal detention of immigrants accused of even non-violent crimes such as theft.
“We’re talking about sending El Cajon residents to foreign concentration camps without a trial,” one woman said, noting that a notorious prison in El Salvador, which has offered to take in deportees, has had people die of dehydration.
Others predicted the resolution would mire the city in costly litigation. Lawsuits potentially be filed by the state of California as well as immigrant rights and civil rights organizations, since the resolution could be challenged as unconstitutional for violating due process and a right for accused persons to have a speedy trial, since the Constitution applies to everyone in the U.S, regardless of citizenship statues.
Some supporters lobbed inflammatory statements. One woman called for all undocumented immigrants to be deported, adding, “Anybody up here who would like to have a sanctuary city should be arrested...Anybody that wants to protest and burn our flag should be arrested also.”
Some opponents likened ICE tactics to fascism or Nazism. Others quoted Bible verses to support positions on both sides.
Amy Reichert from Restore San Diego (photo, right) spoke in support of the resolution, stating, “This should not be a debate. We should not be called anti-Christian or racist.”
The final speaker, Julianne, told the Council that in 1931, “Mexicans were rounded up from hospitals, from cities, from their homes....they were summarily put in boxcars and trucked to Mexico....One of them was my grandfather. He was taken out of the hospital and sent to Mexico City; he was not from Mexico City...My grandmother despairingly went after him with my mother and my aunt; both were born here in the United States” and remained in Mexico until 1965.
She offered a chilling warning about “people who do not learn history and do not remember history. As you can see, it will be done again—and we need to learn from that.”
After the public speakers, Councilmembers held a discussion.
Councilman Gary Kendrick had the City Attorney clarify that SB 54 was challenged in federal court in 2017, but was upheld as constitutional by atrial court and by the 9th circuit court, with the Supreme Court allowing the law to stand without hearing it, making “SB 54 the law of the land,” Kendrick noted.
He then asked City Manager Graham Mitchell to dispel misinformation circulating online claiming that El Cajon is a sanctuary city. Mtichell made clear, “Not once in the nearly 25 years that I’ve been city attorney has the Council adopted a resolution, ordinance, or anything else that the city is a sancturay city.”
Kendrick asked if an officer violates SB 54, can the state remove their certification to serve as a police officer in California? The City Manager looked up state law and later confirmed that while SB54 doesn’t expressly require decertification, there are provisions that if an officer “violates state law or demonstrates bias, the state can take away your certification.”
Kendrick made clear, ”I don’t want to put our police officers in jeopardy or make it difficult to do their job.” He noted that the police need people willing to cooperate as witnesses and report crimes, not be afraid of police. As a Sunday school teacher, he voiced concern over ICE now being allowed to enter churches, schools and hospitals, adding that if people are afraid to go to clinics or hospitals for treatments or vaccines, diseases such as strep throat, measles or chicken pox could spread. “This is hurting our community,” he said.
He noted that no other local cities have passed such a measure, and only one other city of 480 in California has done so.” Let’s see how all this works out through the courts,” he said, voicing concern over costly lawsuits.
Kendrick also condemned callers who left “profane” and “disgusting” messages on his voice mail at City Hall, the played several of them as examples.
The majority of you are traitors to this country and all your information is public,” one caller threated. Another demanded after the last meeting, “Why did you vote no to get rid of all the dirty, stinking illegal aliens?” One message called him a “retarded, fat piece of s**t.” Yet another denounced Kendrick’s mother, who lived in Czechoslovakia when the Nazis took her Jewish boss, who was never seen again. “Goddamn you to f**ing hell and your mother is a f***ing whore,” the caller ranted.
Kendrick indicated that Councilmember Michelle Metschel received similar messages after voting against the resolution. Both say they support deporting convicted violent criminals as SB 54 allows.
“I am disgusted at such an attack on the democratic process through these attempts at intimidation and the threats that are completely against American democracy,” Kendrick said, drawing a standing ovation (photo,left)
Councilmember Metschel used her time to push back against a woman who forwarded an email that spread on the internet, in which Metschel apologized for becoming emotional in what she termed “bad behavior” at the last meeting, though other speakers applauded her for taking a strong stand. In an ironic tone, she thanked those who spread the message and “making sure the public knew a public official could be human and not jaded.”
Metschel then confronted Amy Reichert over her statements repeatedly claiming El Cajon voted to “stay a sanctuary city” including on an Instagram post and an email to supporters. Reichert leaped out of her seat in the audience, shouting repeatedly at Metschel in an angry outburst that prompted calls for her removal. Instead, the Mayor announced a 10-minute recess for “cooler heads” to prevail.
Councilman Ortiz (photo, left) doubled down on his stance in favor of the resolution. “I want violent criminals removed and I have big problems with SB 54,” he said. He noted that many crimes are not included on the list of those for which immigrants can be handed over to ICE, ranging from shoplifting and theft to disorderly conduct, forgery, fraud, drug offenses and arson.
“I’m not going to be pressured or bullied or shouted into saying that this resolution is something that it’s not,” he said. Ortiz called generalizations on both sides “crazy” such as “every immigrant is a criminal” as well as accusations that “I hate Mexicans.” That’s not true.”
Councilman Goble, who cast the swing vote, insisted that it’s about “public safety” but declined to acknowledge the serious concerns raised over potentially innocent people being deported without a trial or conviction. “I will support this resolution because I authored a resolution to support the backs of our police officers who have our backs,”he said, drawing a chorus of both cheers and jeers from the audience.
Mayor Wells made clear that he supports deportation without convictions in court, calling the resolution “a no brainer. We arrest someone for doing something bad who does not belong in this country, we should be able to do anything we can to get them out of this country.” Mayor Wells noted that the majority of El Cajon voters voted for Trump and wanted change.
He then denounced vocal opponents of the resolution as “completely disingenuous” adding, “People just tuned you out, because they know that you are liars.”
Wells made a motion to approve the resolution, which was seconded by Ortiz. The measure passed 3-2, with Metschel and Kendrick opposed.
The audience erupted into a mixture of gasps, jeers, and cheers, with some chanting, “Recall Phil.”
Latinos in Accion has now launched a website, https://www.recallphilortiz.com/, in Spanish and English.
By Alex Schorr
Photo,Left to Right: Dr. Gary Woods (President, Area 3 Trustee), Robert Shield (Vice President, Area 4 Trustee), Scott Eckert (Clerk, Area 2 Trustee), Jim Kelly (Member, Area 5 Trustee), and Chris Fite (Member, Area 1 Trustee).
February 9, 2025 (El Cajon) – Teachers, parents, and community members leveled sharp criticism of the Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD) board of trustees during a special budget workshop meeting on February 6. Numerous speakers objected to the board’s creation of a costly new chief of staff position and waiving of board policies to do so, after the board majority earlier voted to lay off numerous employees, including many teachers.
The first quarter of the meeting was dedicated to the Governing Board Budget. This involved showing where school funding comes from (sales tax, corporation tax, and personal income tax). California Governor Gavin Newsom developed a state budget while the district simultaneously project
ts its own. In May, the Governor’s budget will be reviewed again, while the district budget will be adjusted and adopted sometime in June.
The Governor's proposed budget includes an education budget that invests in core instruction and learning. It also provides continuation for and protection of Proposition 98, which gives mandatory minimum funding for schools while eliminating “one-time funding.” Additionally, one-time funding was illustrated as having an impact on CTE program services, mental health, and chromebooks.
Photo, right: Deputy Superintendent of Business, Pearl Lizuka, introducing the Education Budget for GUHSD and the necessity of Proposition 98.
A staffer’s presentation at theGUHSD workshop illustrated that the greatest risk to Proposition 98 is declining enrollment. The presentation referenced the Local Funding Control Formula (LCFF), which revolves around the use of a Base Grant per ADA, stating that all English learning programs would be provided a 20% cut in funding. In addition to the GUHSD budget, a number of concerns could impact the state budget,including anxiety over stock market vulnerability, elevated interest rates, delayed tax deadlines, and federal policies centered on harsh immigration enforcement.
The podium was opened to public comment before the Board voted on agenda item D1, approval of a new job description for Chief of Staff, and D2, which waives board policies that allows them to accomplish D1.
James Messina, President of Grossmont Education Association (GEA), the district’s teacher’s union, asked, “What are we doing here?” He listed all laws and policies being broken if the Board voted to approve D1 and D2. He mentioned that the new position, if created or hired at all, is something that the Superintendent should be concerned with, not the Board members. Messina continued, stating that GUHSD used to be the envy of the county and that the board was ruining their reputation.
Additionally, Messina stated his concerns in a letter to GEA: “As GEA President, I would hope GUHSD would want to get the best possible candidate for this position, but it seemed more important to fill this position as soon as possible. This position was not flown in EdJoin for prospective applicants to see, [therefore] no applications to screen. GUHSD did not create a hiring panel for introduction level interviews. Finalists were not sent to the Superintendent for 2nd/3rd interviews. All of these steps were skipped and the Governing Board just appointed an employee for the new position. These actions of the Governing Board remove all transparency, go against past practice, GUHSD Governing Board bylaws, and GUHSD Board policies (BB 9900, BP4311).”
Other speakers included parents, teachers and community members stressing a lack of support and that in spite of this, the Board wants to add a new salaried position, which the governing board members have appointed all by themselves without going through the process of vetting, interviews, or the proper hiring processes.
Matthew Norris emphasized an undermining of trust, with Gavin Preston stating that the governing board members manufactured an emergency. Bonnie Price said the board trustees are degrading the quality of education in her district. It was emphasized that the most important job of the board is to annually assess how to make education better for the students, and that it was not clear how this new Chief of Staff position would do this.
Speakers from Monte Vista and Granite Hills high schools illustrated that the Board fired a number of people last year including at least ten teachers, stating that the budget required it. Yet suddenly this year, the Board acquires the money to hire a Chief of Staff who is essentially taking on the role of the fired individuals.
Multiple speakers accused board members of either sidestepping the legal process or downright ignoring it. These speakers brought attention to the fact that this would unnecessarily cost money and public trust.
Only two board members addressed concerns raised by speakers.
Trustee Jim Kelly gave this response. “I'm sure everyone’s minds are made up, and speaking as a 32 year board member, I can tell that this position is needed,” he stated. He indicated that the GUHSD bureaucracy needs to have better communications with the public: “the administration does a really good job at looking after itself, protecting itself, and filtering information that goes into the board,” adding that sometimes the board learns information later that might have resulted in a different decision if known earlier. “We come for one meeting a month, normally...and we’re flying blind,” he asserted, adding, “I have seen sometimes people come up to me saying they are afraid to talk to board members.”
Trustee Chris Fite said hiring the Chief of Staff in this manner would undermine the public trust. We don’t need this position,” said Fite,”and this is not the way we should be doing business.”
In the end, Dr. Gary Woods (President, Area 3), Robert Shield (Vice President, Area 4), Jim Kelly (Area 5 Trustee), and Scott Eckert (Clerk, Area 2) voted in favor of the new Chief of Staff Position, with Chris Fite, (Trustee, Area 1) voting no.
East County News Service
February 11, 2025 (Rancho San Diego) – A head-on collision in Rancho San Diego has left two people dead and three others injured. The deadly crash occurred on February 7 around 8:25 p.m.
An El Cajon man, 26, was driving a 2022 BMW M3 eastbound on Willow Glen Drive east of Murfield Drive when for unknown reasons, the vehicle crossed over the solid, double-yellow lines. It struck the front of a BMW 330i traveling westbound. A Toyota Tacoma also traveling westbound was unable to avoid the other two vehicles and collided into both, causing the Toyota to overturn.
The BMW 330i’s driver and passenger were both pronounced dead at the scene by medical personnel. The driver, 48, and passenger, 32, were both men from El Cajon.
The driver of the BMW M3 sustained major injuries and was transported to Sharp Memorial Hospital.
The driver of the Toyota, 31, and his passenger, a 30-year-old man, sustained minor injuries. Both are from El Cajon.
“This is an ongoing investigation; it is unknown at this time if drugs and/or alcohol were a factor in the crash,” says Officer Jasmine Lopez with the California Highway Patrol.
Photo: Councilman Steve Goble is the likely swing vote when the El Cajon City Council reconsiders an amended version of a controversial immigration measure on Feb. 11.
By Miriam Raftery
February 10, 2025 (El Cajon) - A controversial measure to allow El Cajon Police officers to cooperate with federal immigration authorities is back on tomorrow’s agenda. The newly revised version includes changes from an earlier version that was voted down 3-2 after a five-hour hearing with emotional testimony on both sides. View revised draft.
The immigration matter is scheduled at the end of a 3 p.m. meeting tomorrow. However, there is an earlier 2 p.m. special meeting on unrelated issues. Activists on both sides have been advising the public to arrive early, since seats may fill up for the first meeting with people planning to stay for both meetings.
The original measure was introduced by Mayor Bill Wells and Councilman Phil Ortiz, who voted in favor. Councilmembers Gary Kendrick, Michelle Metschel and Steve Goble voted no, after several attempts at compromise measures failed. The newest reversion includes amended language proposed by Councilmember Goble.
A state law, SB 54, prohibits local police from turning over individuals to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) unless they have been convicted of certain serious felonies, such as murder or rape. California’s law was upheld on appeal and the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, allowing the law to stand. Yet the Trump administration has threatened to prosecute local officials if they don’t cooperate with federal immigration authorities, putting local cities in a difficult situation.
"Federal law prohibits state and local actors from resisting, obstructing, and otherwise failing to comply with lawful immigration-related commands or requests," a Justice Dept. memo states, raising the possibility of charges for harboring immigrants without legal status or for failing to share information with immigration authorities, NPR reports.
The Justice Dept. is setting up a Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group to identify state and local policies or laws that are "inconsistent" with the Trump administration's enforcement efforts, and "where appropriate, to take legal action to challenge such laws." Whether courts would continue to uphold California’s SB 54, or whether a conservative-leaning Supreme Court might overturn it, is unknown.
El Cajon’s latest revision to its proposed measure now states the city’s intent to “comply with federal immigration law to the legal extent permissible for the sole purpose of removing violent criminals from our community.”.
But the city’s language leaves room to cooperate on deportation of people merely accused, but not convicted, of crimes. It notes that the Trump administration says there are “over 647,000 non-detained individuals living in the United States illegally who have pending charges or have been convicted of or charged with violent crimes, including robbery, assault, sexual assault, homicide, and and human trafficking.”
That raises serious concerns about the prospect for innocent people to be deported without a trial. There are many examples of individuals falsely accused of crimes and later proven innocent, such as when DNA tests prove another person committed the crime, or bystander videos emerge to disprove charges. A prime example occurred in La Mesa in 2020, when a police officer accused a young man at a trolley stop of assaulting the officer. A bystander’s video proved that the assault did not occur; the officer was fired for filing a false report, but his actions triggered a riot and accusations of racial profiling.
ECM spoke with Councilman Steve Goble, the likely swing vote on El Cajon’s immigration issue. He proposed another amendment included in the revised draft.
“If you want police officers to work for ICE under SB 54 which is not allowed, and then the feds and the state are at such odds with each other, I want indemnification for our officers, in case anybody comes after their credentials because they are licensed by the state,” Goble told ECM.
His amendment states ,”The City will seek assistance from the United States Attorney General’s office to indemnify the City and its employees for any assistance or
cooperation with federal immigration authorities as permitted by law.” The city also faces potential enforcement actions from the state, however, since Attorney General Rob Bonta has indicated he will hold cities accountable if they violate SB 54.
The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states that any powers not given to the federal government are reserved for the states or the people. Goble notes. California’s SB 54 does not stop the federal authorities from doing their work, he points out, adding that the state doesn’t want to assist in those efforts. (SB 54 does allow cities to turn over undocumented immigrants to ICE if they have been convicted of serious felonies.)
Mayor Wells, who has announced his intent to seek reelection in 2026 and also run for supervisor in 2028, has said his goal is to protect public safety. On X, he recently posted, “I’m bringing back a resolution to support our law enforcement officers working with ICE to remove illegal immigrant criminals from our communities. We all want safer neighborhoods, and I will continue fighting to protect our families from those who break our laws and threaten our safety. Law enforcement must have every tool available to uphold the law and keep criminals off our streets.”
Goble states, “What Bill is saying aspirationally is if we know there is a convicted criminal living in El Cajon illegally, we want the option of contacting ICE.” That might include, for example, a parolee who served time for a serious felony but was not handed over to ICE elsewhere.
However, Goble indicated he has concerns about deporting people who have merely been accused, but not convicted of serious crimes, suggesting he might be open to an amendment limiting ECPD cooperation only to undocumented immigrations who have been convicted in court.
Goble spoke of a San Diego Police officer’s search for an accused serial rapist, who turned out to be in a Border Patrol vehicle, so Border Patrol handed him over to the police instead of deporting him immediately. In Goble’s view, that was the right decision.
“The reason is that it’s better to go through the justice system and be deported as convicted criminal,” Goble explained, noting that if merely deported without a criminal conviction, the suspect could potentially reenter the U.S. again and again.
There is also the potential for the Trump administration to order deportation of any undocumented immigrant, even those living in the U.S. for decades without committing crimes here, since some Trump administration officials including White House Secretary Karoline Leavitt have said they consider everyone who crossed the border illegally to be criminals. Trump, on the campaign trail, frequently spoke of wanting to deport all undocumented immigrants, an estimated 11 million people.Trump has also revoked special protection status for some legal immigrants, including Afghan translators who helped our military.
If a future court were to overturn SB 54, does El Cajon wants its police officers cooperating if the “crime” was merely crossing the border, or overstaying a legal protected status order later revoked, as in the case of Afghans who helped our military?
The Mayor's immigration measure has sparked heated public debate, wtih over 80 people speaking out at the last Council meeting. Elected officials on both sides are facing serious threats, including death threats against a councilmember who voted against the resolution and a recall effort gearing up against at least one Councilmember who voted for the resolution, ECM has learned.
Latinos en Acción has announced a press conference at noon tomorrow in front of City Council chambers at 200 Civic Center Way, El Cajon, in opposition to the resolution, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. A flyer announcing the event states that California law already allows police to transfer violent criminals to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, and expanding local police cooperation would mostly affect non-violent offenders and could lead to racial profiling.
At an earlier hearing on this issue, Violet Lombera with Latinos en Accion testified that moving to El Cajon from Brawley, she was stopped by police in what she views as “racial profiling. I don’t want that to happen again...Doing this is really going to separate and divide us. It’s going to attack my community, Mexican Americans...I’ve been attacked. I’ve been segregated. I’ve been racially profiled. You guys need to reconsider this,” she said, voicing fears of people being stopped and asked for proof of citizenship. ”To do this is really going to hurt everybody in our community.”
While backers of the resolution have voiced concerns over the city being caught in the legal crosshairs between conflicting state and federal laws, El Cajon could also face lawsuits from immigrant rights’ groups over its immigrant policies.
Salvador Salmiento with the National Day Labor Network told the Council on January 14, “Our organization has litigated a bunch of these policies over the years,” adding that he has over the years repeatedly seen ICE detainers issued without probable cause. If immigrants suffer actual damages due to actions of the City Council or its officers, he warned, ”We will sue.”
He added that in lawsuits filed by the organization elsewhere over immigration issues, , “ICE doesn’t pay. The city pays,"adding, "El Cajon can be a better example than this.”
View ECM’s prior coverage:
East County News Service
February 9, 2025 (Oakland, CA) – Last week, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Trump administration from carrying out a spending freeze. “Each day that the pause continues to ripple across the country is an additional day that Americans are being denied access to programs that heal them, house them, and feed them,” Judge Loren AliKhan wrote in the ruling.
Now California Attorney General is accusing the Trump administration of defying the judge’s order and continuing to block funds to states under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA and the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, also known as the bipartisan infrastructure act). Bonta on Feb. 7 filed a motion on behalf of 23 state attorneys general. The motion asks the court to enforce the earlier ruling and and to order Defendants to immediately restore funds until the preliminary injunction motion can be heard and decided.
The coalition seeks to preliminarily enjoin the Trump Administration’s funding freeze, emphasizing the widespread and irreparable harm to states, which rely on billions of dollars of critical federal assistance for public services that ensure access to education, clean air and water, and health care and that support essential infrastructure projects. More than $100 billion in Medicaid funding, tens of billions in infrastructure and climate funding, among the funding at risk in just California, according to a press release issued by Bonta.
The case, NY v.Trump, challenges actions by President Trump, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and federal agencies attempting to pause nearly $3 trillion in federal assistance funding allocated to the states that support critical programs and services that benefit the American people.
The Trump administration has argued that the injunction doesn’t apply to IRA and IIJA funds, the motion indicates. But the judge’s order makes no mention of any such exception.
Bonta’s motion further highlights the harm states face without these funds .
“Let’s be crystal clear: the power of the purse belongs to Congress, not the President,” said Bonta. “The Trump Administration’s dangerous and unconstitutional actions have created chaos and confusion across this country, and caused significant harm to states across the country and the millions of Americans who rely on federal funding, from children to the elderly. In yet another unlawful move, we have evidence that despite the Temporary Restraining Order we secured, the Trump Administration has continued to block funds needed for our domestic energy security, transportation, and infrastructure provided under the IRA and IIJA.”
He added, ”We’re asking the court to enforce its order and ensure that the Trump Administration reinstates access to this critical funding. No one is above the law, and at the California Department of Justice, we will not waver in our commitment to uphold the law and ensure that necessary funding for critical programs and services in states across our country can continue.”
In just this fiscal year, California is expected to receive $168 billion in federal funds – 34% of the state’s budget – not including funding for the state’s public college and university system. This includes $107.5 billion in funding for California’s Medicaid programs, which serve approximately 14.5 million Californians, including 5 million children and 2.3 million seniors and people with disabilities. Additionally, over 9,000 full-time equivalent state employee positions are federally funded. As detailed in the preliminary injunction motion, without access to federal financial assistance, many states could face immediate cash shortfalls, making it difficult to administer basic programs like funding for healthcare and food for children and to address their most pressing needs.
Additionally, as of January 2025, California has been awarded $63 billion from the IIJA and nearly $5 billion from the IRA, not including funds going to California cities, air and water districts, or other political subdivisions. Due to ongoing disruptions impacting disbursements to states despite the court’s TRO, efforts that bolster clean energy investments, transportation, and infrastructure have been put at risk, including:
- The Home Electrification and Appliances Rebates Program, for which the IRA appropriates $4.5 billion to the Department of Energy. The rebate program, administered by state energy offices under final federal grants, subsidizes low- and moderate-income households’ purchase and installation of electric heat pump water heaters, electric heat pump space heating and cooling systems, and other home electrification projects. Thousands of California homeowners have signed up for these programs, received approvals, and even started installation in reliance on these rebates, and are stuck paying their contractors an extra $8,000 if our state energy offices cannot draw down funds. As of February 5, that remained the case: the home rebate grants were being held “for agency review.”
- The Solar for All program, administered by EPA and funded by the IRA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, awarded $7 billion to 60 grantees to install rooftop and community solar energy projects in low-income and disadvantaged communities. These awards—all subject to final grant agreements—support the construction of cheap, resilient power in underserved neighborhoods, and provide particular protection to communities in which wildfire risk regularly causes utilities to de-energize transmission lines. As of February 5, numerous states in the coalition were unable to access their Solar For All grant accounts.
- The Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program, administered by EPA and funded by a $5 billion IRA appropriation, supports states, tribes, and local governments in planning and implementing greenhouse-gas reduction measures. For example, the regional air district covering Los Angeles received a $500 million award, subject to a final grant agreement, to clean up the highly polluting goods movement corridor between the Imperial Valley's logistics hubs and warehouses to the Port of Los Angeles. As of February 5, this grant and other Climate Pollution Reduction Grants remained inaccessible.
- The national air monitoring network and research program under Clean Air Act sections 103 to 105, which has been administered by EPA for the last sixty years to protect communities from dangerous pollution. The IRA appropriated $117.5 million to fund air monitoring grants under this program to increase states’ abilities to detect dangerous pollution like particulate matter (soot) and air toxics, especially in disadvantaged communities. These pollutants create a particular public health emergency in areas recovering from wildfires. As of February 5, air monitoring grants remained inaccessible.
Attorney General Bonta, along with the attorneys general of New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Illinois, led the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin in filing the motions.
The motion to enforce and motion for a preliminary injunction are available here
East County News Service
February 7, 2025 (Rancho San Diego) – Hillsdale Middle School on Brabham Street in Rancho San Diego was placed on lockdown for about 15 minutes due to a call reporting a man with what appeared to be a gun in front the school shortly before 3:30 p.m. yesterday.
Deputies from the Rancho San Diego Sheriff's Station were given a description of the man as they drove to the school. Out of an abundance of caution, deputies requested the school to be placed on lockdown.
Once they arrived at Hillsdale Middle School, located in unincorporated El Cajon, deputies found a man fitting the description outside of campus and detained him for questioning.
“The man, 46, from La Mesa, was found in possession of a non-lethal handgun powered by carbon dioxide (CO2),” says Sgt. Manuel Heredia. After an investigation, it was determined the man had not committed a crime and he was released on scene. The lockdown at the school was lifted after about 15 minutes. No one was hurt.
Deputies continued to work with school staff and Campus Safety Officers from the Cajon Valley Union School District, who have had previous negative encounters with the man.
As a result of these incidents, deputies were able to obtain an emergency temporary protective order against the man, so he cannot come near the school.
As a precaution, Sheriff's Deputies will be conducting extra patrols at Hillsdale Middle School on Friday, February 7.
If you see something, say something. Report any criminal or suspicious activity by calling the San Diego County Sheriff's Office at (858) 868-3200. In the event of an emergency, call 9-1-1.
Source: San Diego County Sheriff
February 6, 2025 (El Cajon) -- Several people have been arrested due to criminal activity at a homeless encampment near Willow Glen Drive in unincorporated El Cajon on a variety of charges.
On Tuesday, February 4, around 2 p.m., a small fire broke out at the encampment. Firefighters quickly knocked down the flames. Fortunately, there were no injuries or property damage.
“Deputies with the Sheriff's Homeless Assistance Resource Team (HART) have conducted multiple outreach operations at this location over the past month, offering services and resources to those experiencing homelessness. Despite these efforts, deputies continued to respond to reports of criminal activity at the encampment,” says Sergeant Aaron Montan.
On Wednesday, February 5, Sheriff's HART performed an enforcement operation at the encampment. Several individuals were arrested on various charges, including drug-related offenses, outstanding misdemeanor warrants and identity theft.
The encampment has now been cleared and clean-up efforts are underway.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Office remains committed to a balanced approach of outreach and enforcement, working closely with community partners to connect individuals in need with available services while addressing criminal activity that impacts public safety, Sgt. Montan says.
To learn more about Sheriff's HART, visit: https://www.sdsheriff.gov/community/homeless-outreach.
To report suspicious or criminal activity, call the Sheriff's Office at (858) 868-3200.
By Miriam Raftery
Photos by Robert Gehr
January 31, 2025 (El Cajon) – After voting to repeal a long-unenforced ban on dog walking downtown, the city of El Cajon has installed “doggie pots” and poop disposal bags to help dog owners cleanup after their pets.
Photos show receptacle near the waterscape outside the Magnolia performing arts center; another is located at the northeast side of Prescott Park.
By Miriam Raftery
View video of full Council hearing (Immigration agenda item begins at 37 minutes.)
January 29, 2025 – Emotions ran high during yesterday’s El Cajon City Council meeting, where a packed chamber heard testimony from 88 members of the public over a proposed over immigration enforcement resolution, followed by a heated Council debate that divided the all-Republican members during a hearing that ran over five hours.
The measure introduced by Mayor Wells, a revision from a version heard two weeks ago, aims to authorize El Cajon police to comply with federal immigration enforcement officials within the limits of state law and the Constitution for the purpose of removing violent criminals.
But the action comes on the same day that the White House Press Secretary indicated that the Trump administration views all undocumented immigrants as “criminals” even though crossing the border itself is a misdemeanor on the first offense, not a felony or violent crime.
Sweeps by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have begun nationwide, picking up many immigrants with no criminal record—including an El Cajon man with no criminal record who was awaiting his asylum hearing when arrested this week by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at his home in front of his five-year-old daughter, Councilman Michelle Metschel revealed in an impassioned speech.
“If this was just about violent criminals, I would be all for it,” Metschel (photo, right) said. “But today is a pivotal moment,” she added, noting that the Council’s decision would “change the course of history” for the city and many of its residents. She said El Cajon’s biggest crime problem was drug criminals comprising a portion of the homeless population, “not a single father raising his young girl, who was arrested down the street from me...He worked a full-time job and had a court date to become legal...His only crime was to come across the border.”
(Editor's note: the name of the arrested immigrant is Ulysses Gomez, according to Councilmember Metschel. ECM has learned that a man by this name had two prior arrests locally, according to the city manager, but that individual was never charged with or convicted of any crime, according to Court records. See full details in an update at the bottom of this story.)
Metschel made clear that she does not support El Cajon become a sanctuary city and wants to see violent criminals removed, but could not support the resolution after several dozen speakers voiced fears of authorities targeting people with brown skin and having to carry citizenship papers to avoid being sent to detention, and that many parents are now afraid to send their children to school, or report crimes to police. “This makes us look like racists. I want no part of it,.” Metschel affirmed, voicing dismay at "hateful rhetoric" by some speakers.
While some speakers voiced fear over authorizing police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities could lead to police providing information that could lead to arrests of people with no criminal record or even detention of citizens without papers, others urged the Council to support the measure, voicing concern for public safety. Though opponents outnumber supporters, both sides drew large turnouts. The hearing was boisterous, with the audience frequently interjecting applause or jeers and the mayor threatening several times to clear the room if the audience wouldn'td quiet down.
Glenn Bagge, an El Cajon business owner, stated that ICE claims that are “650,000 criminals running loose in the U.S.” who are undocumented. “To not allow our police officers to deal with these criminals in the proper fashion, to deal with federal agents, would be criminal,” he said.
Cory Gautereaux, a veteran, said that an immigrant who assaulted the young daughter of a Navy Seal was initially shielded from ICE due to state laws, which prohibit law enforcement from handing over undocumented immigrants unless they have been convicted of a violent crime. ICE did eventually gain access and found child pornography on the suspect’s phone, Gautereaux said.
Of note, immigrants commit crimes at far lower rates than citizens; if an undocumented immigrant is charged with a serious felony, under California’s SB 54 law, they would still be held accountable through the criminal justice system and if found guilty, could then be eligible for deportation.
Speakers against the resolution included representatives of immigrants’ rights and nonprofit groups.
Mejgan Afshan, executive director of Borderlands for Equity, serves many immigrants and refugees in East County including Mexicans, Afghans, Somalis, Chaldeans and more. “There are children scared of going to school for fear of losing their parents,” she said, referencing the Trump administration’s policy change this week allowing ICE to enter schools, churches and hospitals. “Councilmembers must avoid fearmongering and uplift the dignity of all residents,” she urged.
Yusef Miller, a cofounder of the North County Equity and Justice Coalition and Activist San Diego board member, stated, ”This is not about law and order. If it was, we would not be releasing all those people who stormed our capitol,” referencing Trump’s sweeping pardons and sentence commutations for all 1,500+ insurrectionists including those convicted of assaulting police officers. “What we see here is an attack on our brown community.” He likened the situation to the Fugitive Slave Act, which resulted in many blacks in free states being sent back to slavery. “Do you support families, or do you support those who will bring fear...into our communities?” he asked the Council.
Brian Kougl (photo, left) with the San Diego organizing project, wearing a T-shirt with the statue of liberty proclaiming ‘I’m with her,’ said mass deportations are unpatriotic, immoral and wrong. “You should not support the hate-filled agenda of a delusional convicted felon,” he said of President Donald Trump, who has 36 felony convictions.
Immigration lawyer Maria Chavez with Partner for Advancement of New Americans said she represents immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in El Cajon. “I fight for them every single day, and you need to, too,” she stated.
Dilkhwaz Ahmed with License to Freedom, an El Cajon nonprofit helping immigrants and refugees who are victims of violence, implored the Council to vote down the resolution. She noted that many immigrants have endured horrible conditions, such as an Afghan woman who was “raped over and over again” on her journey here; such individuals could face physical harm or death if deported. Though refugees are here legally, Trump has blocked new refugees from entering and has threatened to remove protected status from some refugees in the U.S., which could include Afghans.
Some likened the national immigration crackdown to fascism and Nazism. Nicole Bacca, a nurse, observed, ”Two weeks ago we saw Elon Musk onstage give Nazi salutes.” Trump has named Musk to head up a committee charged with improving government efficiency. She noted that earlier campaign promises to deport only violent criminals have proven false, with long-term residents with no criminal records now being taken into detention camps or deported and even churches and schools subject to seizure of immigrant children and parents. “Call it what it is—fascism, while people like Bill Wells seek power,” she said. “No surrounding cities are doing this...Choose compassion over fear and division,” she concluded.
An immigrant woman said she feared being stopped for papers, likening the situation to Jews forced to wear yellow stars before they were mass deported and millions killed in Hitler’s concentration camps during World War II. A Native American woman voiced concerns over Native Americans being stopped and said her grandmother, a Native-born American, was once deported because she couldn't speak English.
Sam Halpern said his family arrived in the 1800s to escape persecution. “Our nation was built by immigrants,” he said, noting that our nation has historically welcomed immigrants seeking freedom. He said this should include “freedom from jackboots at the door. Why do we rush to intimidate people seeking the American dream?”
But Republican Amy Reichert (photo, right) with Reform San Diego denounced as “offensive” speakers who invoked Nazism and the Holocaust. She said she was raised Jewish, then added, “I gave my heart to Jesus in my 30s. Jesus did seek asylum—legal asylum,” she added, drawing laughter from the crowd. She voiced anger at nonprofit leaders who help migrants as “profiting off illegal immigration” and dismissed fears voiced by many speakers, then threatened, “The only people who should be afraid are the people who vote against this. There will be ramifications.”
After the hearing, Reichert sent out an e-mail blast to conservative followers, with a headline claiming that the Council majority had voted to “keep sanctuary city status.” That is false, since El Cajon has never been a sanctuary city and every council member has voiced opposition to sanctuary city policies. No new protections for immigrants were adopted, nor were any existing ones removed by Councilmembers.
Update: After thi
s article ran, Reichert emailed ECM stating, "I never called El Cajon a Sanctuary city in my email."
This is also untrue. See screenshot, left, with headline in her original email.
One of the final speakers was Bud Collins, who has worked with councilmembers on homeless outreach and said he believes that all love El Cajon. He urged Council to pray and ask, “What would the Lord have you do?” He then cited a Bible verse: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
A vigorous council debate followed public testimony in what the Mayor acknowledged was “the most contentious Council meeting ever.”
Councilmember Metschel led off by denouncing hate and making clear that she supported a middle ground—not becoming a sanctuary city, but neither committing to a path to support federal actions that instill fear across many community members and could result in deportations of people with no criminal record, like her neighbor, ripped apart from his 5-year-old daughter.
Later she revealed, “Nobody knows where the little girl is. It’s crucial that our police officers have trust in the entire community, no matter what color, what religion they are.” If we lose that, we are less safe as a community,” she said, noting that some would be afraid to report crimes as witnesses or victims.
She acknowledged, “This could be the end of my political career. I don’t care, because I stand up for the people here.”
Councilman Gary Kendrick talked about his mother, who was born in Czechoslovakia. In 1939, with Hitler in power, her best friend and her friend’s family disappeared, as well as her boss, who was Jewish and never heard from again. Kendrick’s mother married a U.S. soldier and the family often vacationed in Mexico. But when Kendrick was 12, he recalled a checkpoint officer saw her European-style smallpox vaccination on her arm and asked for her passport, which she didn’t have with her. “I was scared out of my mind...That was 50 years ago and I’m still traumatized,” Kendrick said, adding that the experience resonates today with what many immigrants now fear could happen here.
“If we comply with the feds, it’s like a blank check,” he pointed out, adding that the city doesn’t know all that the feds may ask of local authorities. “It keeps changing,” he said. “We have 70 ethnic groups in El Cajon and we get along remarkable well. We don’t have gang wars. I did my research and found out that immigrants commit half (the rate) of crimes that citizens do...They pay landlords and do jobs others won’t,” noting that most agricultural workers are immigrants, including many who are not documented. “I’ve listened to both sides....I am concerned about the criminal element,” he acknowledged.
Kendrick and Metschel then introduced an alternative resolution that they drafted before the meeting. It praised the contributions of immigrants and declared intent for the city to follow state law, which already allows police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities for violent criminal undocumented immigrants.
But Councilman Phil Ortiz, whose district is predominantly Latino and Middle Eastern immigrants and whose grandmother came here as a pregnant immigrant, objected. Ortiz stated that “our rules and laws” are what makes America different from other nations. He cited a World Health Organization estimate that there are 2.5 million people worldwide living in poverty, and that we can’t let everyone into the U.S. He praised the presidents of El Salvador and Argentina for reforms that he said reduced crime and poverty.
“I don’t see any issue with our police, if the come across these people, to call ICE,” he said. While acknowledging immigrants’ contributions to our economy, insisted Ortiz, who coauthored the Mayor’s resolution. “The rule of law has to apply.”
Councilman Steve Goble sought to find a middle ground, asking numerous questions and introducing several alternative proposals that failed to win adequate support for adoption. While he made clear that he wants violent criminals removed, he observed, “The question is how to get them out of our city...who’s going to do it?” He later noted, “We have so much to do with homelessness, we can’t take on immigration...I don’t think we can assist with federal enforcement action,” he added, noting state laws prohibiting most cooperation. “Let the state and the feds fight it out,” he said of conflicting laws, “and let me concentrate on serve and protect.”
Mayor Bill Wells (photo, right) spoke last, insisting that the resolution isn’t about racism or Nazism. “I think this is about a war that ended on November 5th. It’s about Trump and non-Trump, progressivism versus conservatism.” He added that 57% of the people in El Cajon voted for Trump “and knew where he stood on immigration.” He reiterated his view that if local police come into contact with an immigrant who is a gang member, for example, if police could cooperate with immigration officers, “We should.”
In the end, the Mayor’s resolution failed on a 3-2 vote with Councilmembers Kendrick, Metschel and Goble opposed, while Mayor Wells and Councilmember Ortiz voted in support.
Read the Mayor’s revised resolution that failed passage on pages 57-59 from City Council agenda attachments.
View ECM’s prior coverage on this resolution:
Update Feb. 5, 2025: A man named Ulysses Gomez, the same name as the immigrant arrested by ICE whom Councilwoman Metschel said was separated from his daughter,, did have a prior arrest in 2017 for driving under the influence and was ordered deported during Trump’s first presidency, then was arrested again in 2020 on a domestic violence accusation, according to El Cajon City Manager Graham Mitchell. Mitchell suggests that ICE may have been following up on the 2017 deportation warrant.
However, A check of San Diego Superior Court records by ECM found no listing for Ulysses Gomez, indicating that no trial occurred. Mitchell told ECM that it appears " the DA decided not to pursue either of the cases, so he was arrested for, but not charged or convicted.”
The arrest by ICE last week suggests that the Trump administration may be including individuals who were accused but not convicted of crimes, raising the possibility that innocent individuals could wind up deported to their home countries or potentially locked up in Guantanamo, where the Trump administration says it wants to send 30,000 deportees. Metschel has advised ECM that since this article ran, Gomez's daughter has been sent to stay with family members. Gomez was sent to the Otay Mesa detention facility pending deportation.
Correction: Councilmember Metschel voted no on both the Mayor's resolution and Coucilman Goble's compromise measure. Councilman Ortiz voted in favor.