Some Portsmouth residents are concerned about community trust and worker safety following a recent ICE action where four workers from a local Mexican restaurant were detained earlier this month.
Several residents attended government meetings this week to speak about their concerns about what they described as unidentified law enforcement in their community. This comes as arrests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New Hampshire have more than tripled since January when Donald Trump took office, according to data from the New York Times.
Sophia Shae was among about a dozen residents who spoke about the issue at a city council meeting on Monday. She said she has managed multiple restaurants and added that some restaurant workers don’t feel safe right now.
“I think it's very important to make sure that the people who are detaining these people are identified, have badge numbers, aren't wearing masks, that we know who these people are,” she said.
Portsmouth Police Chief Mark Newport said his department was notified to be on standby ahead of the arrests earlier this month, but reiterated that the city does not have an agreement to cooperate with ICE. Instead, he encouraged residents to call the police if they see armed and unidentified people.
“Don't hesitate to contact us with any questions,” he said. “If someone's knocking on your door and you're not sure who they are, contact us and we will get to the bottom of a resolution of whatever is going on.”
Several residents said they were relieved by the fact that the Portsmouth Police Department is not planning on detaining anyone on suspicion of immigration status – although Newport clarified that the department is working with federal agencies.
Newport said if a resident is part of a separate investigation and there is a pending warrant from another law enforcement agency, including ICE, the police will reach out to ask the other agency if they are interested in detaining the person further.
But some residents at public meetings this week say that’s not enough. Several people proposed creating training for restaurants on how to respond to an ICE action and asking the police to warn restaurants if they get a heads-up.
Sarah Cornell attended a meeting of the police commissioners on Tuesday to ask them to build trust with the community and issue a statement saying that ICE was not welcome in the city.
“If you truly follow your mission to protect all residents regardless of immigration status. You will stand up for us before we are disappeared,” she said. “Don't wait for us to call for help.”
This conversation comes as state, county and some local law enforcement increase their participation in immigration enforcement.
On a state level, the legislature recently passed a bill banning what they called “sanctuary policies.” When it takes effect in January of 2026, local police departments will be required to cooperate with federal immigration authorities or risk loosing a quarter of state funding.
On a county level, the Rockingham County sheriff’s office signed a 287(g) agreement with ICE in April that will train all the sheriff’s deputies to carry out some immigration tasks, like serving a warrant.
In this environment, Portsmouth Mayor Deaglan McEachern thanked residents for their feedback at the city council meeting on Monday. He said that the city is looking for ways to support their residents, including working with the legal department to track where the restaurant workers were taken.
“The test now is how we come together as a community, supporting one another, continuing to support the restaurants, the employees of those restaurants,” he said. “We're going to do everything within our power and then stretch a little bit to try to get powers that we don't have.”
