U.S. Rep. Janelle Bynum has called on federal officials to pause non-emergency immigration enforcement in Bend, Deschutes County, in the wake of a school shooting. In a letter to acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement director David Venturella, Bynum stated that families in the area have been fearful of seeking mental health care, gathering with neighbors, speaking to law enforcement, and sending children back to school due to ICE’s presence.
The shooting occurred at Silver Rail Elementary, where a 16-year-old former student shot and killed three students and a teacher, injured another student and teacher, and was later killed by a father who followed him into the school. All Bend-La Pine Schools reopened Wednesday, except for Silver Rail Elementary.
Bynum wrote that immigrant families in the area are avoiding mental health and community services due to fears of detention or deportation. Parents have reportedly been unwilling to pick up their children’s belongings from the Silver Rail investigation because of these fears.
Spokespeople for ICE and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to questions about a reported surge in immigration arrests in Oregon. Local immigrant rights organizations noted an increase in immigration arrests in the state earlier this month, following the Trump administration’s announcement to increase enforcement in sanctuary cities.
In Oregon, a decades-old law that voters reaffirmed in 2018 bars state or local government resources from enforcing federal immigration law without a warrant signed by a judge. ICE agents were in Bend last Thursday to return a truck driver to state custody after he was released on bail following a car crash that killed two newlyweds last November.
Local activists shared pictures of marked agency vehicles and reports of ICE arrests in Central Oregon over the past week. In her letter, Bynum requested that Venturella pause all non-emergency immigration enforcement in Deschutes County, refrain from enforcement actions at schools, hospitals, counseling centers, places of worship, memorial sites, or vigils, and notify her office in advance of any enforcement that could not be deferred.
Bynum wrote that pausing enforcement is not a political concession, but rather a matter of basic decency and professionalism. She noted that federal agencies routinely adjust operations during natural disasters and other emergencies to allow people to seek shelter and aid without fear. The aftermath of a school shooting, she argued, calls for the same judgment.
