WATSONVILLE >> The Watsonville City Council unanimously voted Tuesday to uphold its commitment to the safety and well-being of its local undocumented immigrant community in light of Donald Trump’s scheduled return to the White House next week.

Watsonville first passed an ordinance proclaiming itself to be a sanctuary city in 2007 and reaffirmed its status in 2017 shortly after the start of Trump’s first term. With Trump vowing to carry out what he has called “the largest deportation program in American history” in his next term, the city brought forth a new resolution at the recommendation of Mayor Maria Orozco.

Police Chief Jorge Zamora said the goal was to send a message of solidarity to ensure all residents feel valued and protected, regardless of immigration status.

“The fear is real,” he said. “There’s people not going out to buy groceries, they’re staying in their homes isolated, and the current ICE enforcement throughout the state and throughout the country just amplifies that fear.”

Zamora said the Watsonville Police Department is in compliance with the California Values Act, which prevents local law enforcement agencies from using resources to investigate, detain or arrest people based on their immigration status. He said the department would only work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement if ordered by the courts to do so.

“Our goal is really to harness trust,” he said. “We work tremendously hard to gain the confidence of our community.”

Part of building that trust, Zamora said, is working with migrant education programs and going out into the fields to inform migrants what their rights are. Officers carry cards in English and Spanish explaining that police officers are not immigration officers and will not report people’s information to ICE. These cards are handed over to people pulled over for traffic stops for minor infractions who might be leery handing over their info to the police.

Zamora introduced Kate Hinnekamp, operations manager of the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County’s Immigration Project, one of the Watsonville Police Department’s biggest partners in its immigrant support efforts. The Immigration Project provides services like green card and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals renewals, applications for U.S. citizenship and helping undocumented immigrants become lawful permanent residents through family relationships or humanitarian means like “U visas” for victims of serious crimes.

Hinnekamp said the program also has red cards advising people of their rights, and she expects they will become more prominent in the community. These cards, available in different languages, have information on constitutional rights and rules on how and when certain laws can be enforced.

“Somebody cannot be stopped, detained, questioned just based on the color of their skin or because they’re dressed like a farmworker,” she said. “An ICE agent has to have some sort of probable cause for stopping somebody, generally speaking, a judicial warrant with that person’s name on it.”

Hinnekamp said the Immigration Project will have new versions of the cards containing a rapid response phone number for if people suspect ICE activity.

“Somebody will arrive to confirm that, and observers can arrive to film that and document what’s going on,” she said. “People can also call that number to get connected with legal assistance for themselves if that’s possible.”

Hinnekamp said the Immigration Project is also promoting a Childcare Safety Plan, where undocumented parents can list who they would want to look after their children if they are temporarily taken away.

Councilman Jimmy Dutra brought up the recent ICE raids in Bakersfield, which targeted migrant workers in public places like a gas station diner and a Home Depot parking lot.

“How effective is handing a card at that point?” he asked.

Hinnekamp said the goal is to state what the law is and how people can exercise their rights.

“If they’re in a home or they’re in a vehicle, hopefully they don’t open the door, but if they’re exposed like that, knowing their rights really is the only defense,” she said. “The last thing we want people to do is run or try to evade enforcement because then there is a probable cause.”

Councilman Casey Clark said the cards should make clear that the cards themselves will not protect people from locally enforced laws.

“If I’m pulled over and I have a vehicle code violation, I can’t just hand an officer this red card and I’m absolved, correct?” he asked.

Zamora said that in cases where there is probable cause, people do need to provide identification, but there needs to be reasonable suspicion that a crime has taken place for them to be stopped.

Clark said he was not opposed to the red cards, but without an explanation of which situations it could be used for, it could give people a false sense of security. Hinnekamp said the program’s literature distinguishes between local law and the Fourth Amendment.

“It’s very specific to immigration, this guidance,” she said.

In a public comment, former Mayor Oscar Rios said the resolution was an important way to condemn the immigration policies of the incoming administration.

“All of us today are really called to step up for what is justice, what is fair,” he said. “Our valley depends on all our immigrant sisters and brothers.”

Former Mayor Rebecca Garcia praised the resolution but felt it lacked language to support Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals students.

“I have the privilege of tutoring and mentoring DACA students at Cabrillo College, and now they’re worried that that protection will be taken away from them,” she said. “They need to know that the city will support them if necessary.”

Councilman Eduardo Montesino motioned for the council to approve the resolution with Garcia’s recommendation to add language supporting Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals residents. The motion was approved 6-0, as Mayor Pro Tempore Kristal Salcido was absent for this item.

“Watsonville has always been a place of compassion and inclusion where all individuals, regardless of their immigration status, can feel safe, supported and valued,” said Orozco. “This resolution reinforces our dedication to protecting and uplifting our immigrant communities, including our farmworkers and DACA recipients who contribute to the vitality of our city and local economy.”