An immigration agent tried to search for a fourth-grader at Queens school — but was sent packing by staff, according to city officials.
“Mayor’s been briefed on a fed immig agent showing up at Queens’ PS58 Thurs. asking about a 4th grader. School turned him away,” Mayor de Blasio’s press secretary Eric Phillips tweeted.
The lone agent from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service didn’t have a warrant and he was dismissed by an administrator and a school safety official, a Department of Education rep added.
The federal agent went to the front security desk, but did not get any further, according to Gregory Floyd, president of Teamsters Local 237, which represents the school safety officer.
The agent was told the student was not in school, Floyd added — although he didn’t know if the administrator or safety officer provided that information. It isn’t clear if the move violates city protocol.
A source familiar with the situation said that while the safety officer notified the administration, she did not immediately contact the NYPD’s school safety command — and that does go against city requirements. The violation could result in disciplinary action, most likely a docked vacation day.
The incident comes just two months after city officials ordered school employees to bar immigration officers without warrants. At that point, there hadn’t been any instances of agents hunting for students in schools. The policy was instituted to put parents’ minds at ease, de Blasio said at the time.
Floyd slammed the mayor’s policy for placing the agents he represents in situations that could lead to punishment from the city government or federal prosecutors.
“If they cooperate [with immigration] they can be suspended by the city,” he said. “If they don’t cooperate, they can be arrested by the federal government. These are nice choices to have when you’re trying to do an honest days work.”
“Is the mayor going to pay the legal bills for the school safety agent if they’re tried in court?”