Good morning!
The community was roiled last week with high-profile immigration arrests in Salem.
At Salem Reporter, we’re working hard to do what we do – gather the facts, provide trusted information and skip the speculation.
Rachel Alexander, managing editor, wrote a note to readers about that work. I’m sharing it this morning so help you understand our approach.
Her note:
Since our report Tuesday about a round of immigration arrests in Salem, we’ve gotten the same question several times from readers: Why don’t you say what people are being charged with when they’re arrested?
It’s a good question, and as our managing editor, I wanted to take a minute to explain.
First, immigration violations are typically civil, not criminal, matters. ICE takes people into custody typically to determine if someone is in the country without legal authorization or otherwise deportable, and to begin deportation proceedings.
While criminal convictions or charges can play into a decision to deport someone, an ICE administrative arrest is done on the basis of suspected immigration status.
Second, there’s virtually no information publicly available about who ICE is arresting.
If our reporters want to see who was charged with a crime in Marion County this week, we can pull up the circuit court docket and see a list of names with corresponding charges. If we want to see who’s in the county jail, a roster listing everybody and their booking date is available on the county website.
There’s no parallel public system for immigration arrests, and locating information typically requires already knowing a name of a person taken into custody.
That also means we don’t know the immigration status of people ICE is arresting – and immigration status is more complicated than “legal” and “not.” They may be in the U.S. illegally without a criminal record or with one. They may be a visa holder or green card recipient. They may be someone in the midst of immigration proceedings to determine asylum status or renew a visa. They may be an immigrant brought to the U.S. illegally as a child who’s received a work permit, but has no permanent legal status.
ICE didn’t immediately respond to requests from Salem Reporter and other local media asking for information about who was arrested and why – this week or in other local cases. Advocacy groups typically don’t publicize that information when they have it to protect the privacy of families they work with.
That doesn’t mean we make no effort to find out. But it means we’re often reliant on sources like family social media posts, fundraising campaigns or word of mouth from people who observed arrests or learned about who was taken after the fact.
Our reporters are working on more in-depth explanatory coverage explaining these nuances, and still seeking to track down information about who has been arrested and the outcomes of their cases. We welcome your suggestions, questions and tips: [email protected].
–Rachel Alexander, managing editor
I have an update for you this morning.
A top federal official on Friday did provide Salem Reporter information about last week’s immigration operations in Salem. That came as a Salem man was charged with assaulting federal officers during that operation.
Before that report, advocacy groups shared what information they had and criticized federal officials.
On another topic, the performance of schools is and should be a critical issue for Salem.
Andrea Castañeda, superintendent of the Salem-Keizer School District, addressed student achievement in a candid speech last week to the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce.
And we also shared the work of the Oregon Journalism Project on this topic. In launching a series on schools, our colleagues at the project shared a compelling interview with a top education critic. I’d welcome your thoughts about this piece – and if you’d like to see other parts of this series.
In Salem city government reporting:
•The city is advancing with plans for a new walking path in Wallace Marine Park, where homeless camps have long dominated.
•Taking donations for public services roused city councilors to decide a policy was needed.
•The West Salem Neighborhood Association wants to improve four parks while the North Lancaster Neighborhood Association counted nearly 700 people at a recent event. Here’s our monthly look at what your associations are doing.
In community reporting:
•The availability of help for people facing mental health issues continues to grow. Marion County recently opened an expanded clinic. As the story reports: “The expansion fully was driven by wanting to increase accessibility for individuals. And the more people we can serve, the better,” according to Debbie Wells, director of the county’s Behavioral Health Crisis Services Division.
•Artists are rallying to save Elsinore Framing. An auction is scheduled for today.
•See our photos from the Veterans Day event at the Capitol.
In a bit of whimsy:
•An iconic Oregon story is about the effort to blow up a whale on the Oregon coast. Salem newspapers covered the 1970 event, including a report from my father, Clarence. He was working for United Press International at the time and the family car got sprayed with foul whale oil. He recounted for me last week driving home from Florence with some of my siblings, gagging on smell all the way.
And on the air:
Here’s the last “Coffee Time” podcast for a quick catch-up on local news with Rachel Alexander and Jacob Espinoza, host of “What’s Happening Salem.”
HAVE A COMMENT? SUGGESTION?
Have thoughts about our reporting? A story we should do? A person we should profile? Or do you have questions about how we do our work? You’re welcome to send me an email – I read every one of them. Email: [email protected].
–Les Zaitz, Editor and owner
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