Eye on Safety: OKC Police on illegal immigration

With law enforcement agencies across the nation cracking down on illegal immigration, there are questions about how police in Oklahoma will enforce immigration law.

News 9 sat down with Oklahoma City Police Chief Ron Bacy to learn more about his department's operations regarding illegal immigration.

MORE COVERAGE: Targeted immigration enforcement operations happening in Oklahoma

Q: How will OCPD enforce immigration issues here?

A: "First and foremost, what we think is important for everyone to know is that Oklahoma City is not doing anything different. We are going to serve our community with the most professional police service that we can. It is very important that we express to people that if they have an issue, we want them to be able to call for help. A danger to one of us is a danger to all of us, and public safety is of utmost concern to us."

Q: In recent weeks here we've seen protests related to immigration issues, and I know some of the crowds have been very large. How will Oklahoma City enforce the rules and permits when it comes to protests?

A: "Like anything, when you have something that creates community concern, you're going to sometimes have these incidents where people come out and they're going to express their feelings about it, and that's led to protest and maybe some other activities in the future. When we know about those, we try to have the appropriate staffing to ensure that things don't get out of hand and that no laws are violated. There is a right way and a wrong way to do that. Permits are encouraged, that's actually the legal way to do that, but more importantly, we don't want to be disruptive to the quality of life of other residents of the city as well."

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Q: How does OCPD work to differentiate itself with its badge versus any other badge? Some people might be concerned with hearing about some of these recent executive orders and seeing a badge they may not be able to distinguish between ICE or Oklahoma City Police. Are you concerned about interacting with the community with your officers?

A: "Obviously we understand that. Emotions are high right now, people are fearful, and as a police department, I want to double down and say that we want to serve all the residents of Oklahoma City when they're in a time of need. We're going to be as professional as we can, the only time that we're going to inquire about immigration status is when it's pertinent to an investigation that we're working on."

Q: Have you heard concerns from the community that you are actively conducting raids for immigration-related issues?

A: "Absolutely, one of the things that we noticed very early on where there are a lot of false reports on social media. Community leaders reached out in regards to that as well, and they tried to debunk those rumors that immigration raids were happening all over the city. What we've noticed is, anytime we have a gathering of police cars for any type of incident, sometimes there's the assumption that it's related to some type of special operation regarding immigration, and that's not the case. We have not conducted any special operations in relation to immigration."

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