ATLANTA — A Cobb County immigration lawyer tells Channel 2 Action News that he is getting hundreds of calls a day from people who are frightened and confused by the latest immigration crackdown.
Attorney Michael Urbina said Monday that federal agents are not just targeting people with criminal records.
For some families, they are so worried that they actually contemplating keeping their kids home from school.
In the meantime, Urbina told Channel 2’s Michael Seiden that it’s important that people understand their rights.
“We knew something like this would happen,” Urbina said after learning about the target operations.
Multiple federal agencies assisted US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers over the weekend as they made hundreds of arrests across the country, including right here in metro Atlanta.
“It’s definitely created a sense of fear and uncertainty,” Urbina said.
While the Trump administration has touted the crackdown as targeting criminals, Urbina said he has heard other stories about authorities arresting people without criminal records.
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“I heard of a lady out in Athens who has been here for over 10 years, has five children here. She just had a removal order from a long time ago, so they targeted her,” Urbina said.
On Sunday, pastor Luis Ortiz told Channel 2 Action News that he was in the middle of giving his sermon at his church in Tucker when ICE knocked on the door and arrested one of his members.
“They don’t want to go home because they’re scared the officers are outside,” Ortiz said.
Right now, it’s unclear how many arrests have been made here in metro Atlanta, but Urbina said it’s important that you know your rights, especially if you get a knock on the door from ICE.
“Don’t incriminate yourself, stay quiet, maintain proof that they’ve been here for the last two years, because that’s been one of the main focuses. There is a law for expedited removal that if a person hasn’t been here for two years,” Urbina said.
Seiden reached out to ICE on Monday hoping to get some local arrest numbers, but so far his calls haven’t been returned.
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