ACLU of Puerto Rico denounces illegal collaboration between local police and federal immigration agencies during congressional hearing

San Juan, P.R. — The The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Puerto Rico denounced that illegal, discriminatory, and dangerous practices of collaboration between local police and federal immigration authorities have been documented across the archipelago, during a congressional shadow hearing on the use of state and local agencies by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“Local police, especially municipal police, have repeatedly acted as de facto immigration agents. This practice is illegal, discriminatory, and extremely dangerous,” warned Lolimar Escudero Rodríguez, Policy Counsel of the ACLU of Puerto Rico.

In its written testimony, the ACLU of Puerto Rico presented evidence of cases in which municipal police officers have acted as immigration agents, referring immigrants to federal agencies without a judicial warrant, without legal authority, and without the necessary protocols to protect fundamental rights. This occurs even in the absence of formal agreements under the 287(g) program, which allows ICE to delegate certain federal immigration enforcement functions to state or local agencies.

“The actions of local police officers who assume immigration enforcement functions open the door to racial profiling, arbitrary detentions, family separation, and the erosion of public trust in the authorities that are supposed to protect our communities,” emphasized Annette Martínez Orabona, Executive Director of the ACLU of Puerto Rico.

The impact of this issue extends far beyond the people detained, causing entire communities to fear driving, working, taking their children to school, accessing health care, reporting crimes, or participating in public life.

Improper collaboration by municipal police under scrutiny

As an example of these practices, the ACLU of Puerto Rico highlighted the case of Joan Alberto Zorrilla, a Dominican immigrant detained after an intervention by the Carolina Municipal Police on January 8, 2026. In that case, a municipal officer stopped him for alleged violations of a municipal ordinance, accessed his Puerto Rico driver’s license information and, without legal basis, contacted Border Patrol.

The organization further denounced that the same municipal officer changed the date of Zorrilla’s administrative appointment at the municipal police station. When Zorrilla arrived for what he believed was a routine matter, Border Patrol agents were waiting for him. He was arrested on the spot and transferred to the CBP station at Ramey Base in Aguadilla.

“This was not due process, but a trap coordinated by a local officer acting beyond the limits of his authority. The case of Joan Alberto Zorrilla is a symptom of a systemic problem,” said Escudero Rodríguez.

The ACLU of Puerto Rico opposes any collaboration, including under the federal 287(g) program. A report published by XXXX in February details how the Trump administration is dramatically expanding the program to transform state and local law enforcement agencies into a deportation police force, fueling racial profiling, civil rights violations, and widespread fear in communities.

The organization also recalled the case of Aracelys Terrero Mota, a Dominican immigrant residing in Puerto Rico, with an approved work permit and protected as a survivor of gender-based violence under the federal Violence Against Women Act, or VAWA. On May 25, 2025, Terrero Mota was stopped by a municipal officer and detained by federal Customs and Border Protection agents in Cabo Rojo, despite presenting valid immigration documentation. The municipal officer who made the referral had neither a judicial warrant nor legal authority to hand her over to immigration authorities.

The organization warned that these collaborations between local police, ICE, and Border Patrol may involve constitutional violations, including racial profiling, unreasonable detentions, discrimination, improper surveillance, and the weakening of local protections. It also cited federal case law recognizing municipal civil liability for rights violations committed by their agents, including the precedents of Monroe v. Pape and Monell v. Department of Social Services of the City of New York.

The organization urged Congress and federal agencies to end the 287(g) program and its informal equivalents, investigate the misuse of local police in Puerto Rico for immigration enforcement purposes, guarantee respect for due process, and establish oversight mechanisms to prevent collaborations outside lawful channels.

You can watch the congressional shadow hearing live through this link.