Small Rejects El Pueblo Unido Funding Demand, Says Anger Over ICE Is Directed at Wrong Target

ATLANTIC CITY — Mayor Marty Small Sr. says Atlantic City will not establish an immigrant legal-defense fund sought by El Pueblo Unido, while strongly defending the city's Police Department and arguing that frustration over federal immigration enforcement is being directed at the wrong level of government.

Small addressed the escalating dispute Monday during an appearance on Off The Press with Scott Cronick, hours after El Pueblo Unido outlined a series of demands following Saturday's protest outside Atlantic City police headquarters.

The organization is seeking an impartial investigation into three Atlantic City police officers it says interacted with federal immigration agents, dismissal of charges stemming from Saturday's protest, an apology from the Police Department and city funding for immigrant-defense efforts.

El Pueblo Unido Executive Director Cristian Moreno-Rodriguez also said the organization intends to demonstrate every Saturday until its demands are addressed.

Small made clear Monday that at least one of those demands will not be met by his administration.

"They said that they want us to set up a fund, you know, for immigrants, which that's outside of the city's jurisdiction," Small said.

"We're not going to set up funds for, you know, anyone," Small continued. "If we did, we would have to do it for all segments of the population. And that's just not what government is for. That's just not how government works."

Small said the city instead put the organization in contact with the governor's office, which he said has a fund that could potentially address its concerns.

"The city is not going to interfere in anything. The city is not going to, um, set up a legal defense fund," Small said.

Small: ICE Doesn't Coordinate With City

Small also expanded considerably on a statement he issued earlier Monday addressing the controversy surrounding federal immigration enforcement in Atlantic City.

The mayor said neither his administration nor the Atlantic City Police Department is coordinating ICE operations.

"We have no control or jurisdiction over ICE," Small said. "It's not like they're calling me as the mayor and saying that we're going to raid these properties. We're looking for these people and they're not coordinating with our police department."

Small said federal immigration enforcement is outside the city's authority and cautioned against expecting municipal officials to exercise powers they do not have.

"People think because you're the mayor of Atlantic City that you're Superman and you can solve everyone's problems," Small said. "That's not what's going to happen. I'm going to be very, very, very realistic."

At the same time, Small made clear that his position should not be interpreted as an endorsement of the way federal immigration enforcement is being carried out.

"Those tactics are very, very, very questionable that ICE are using," Small said. "There's no space for that."

But, he added, "I'm not going to come out and make a statement or over promise and under deliver because we have absolutely no control over the situation."

'They're Targeting Their Anger at the Wrong People'

Small also offered an unequivocal defense of the Atlantic City Police Department.

The mayor said his administration supports the Hispanic community and pointed to Atlantic City's multicultural population and the city's creation of a multicultural office.

"I understand the frustration," Small said. "I sympathize and empathize with them and everything else."

But he said the city cannot override federal immigration authorities.

"We can't supersede ICE and they're targeting their anger at the wrong people," Small said. "Listen, we got the best police department in the world. And I support them wholeheartedly."

Small also rejected suggestions that the city or its Police Department is opposed to Atlantic City's Hispanic community.

"I want it to be crystal clear. That we are not against the Hispanic community," Small said. "The fine men and women in blue of the best police department in the world is not against the Hispanic community."

Dispute Follows Saturday Arrests

The increasingly public dispute follows a Sept. 12 demonstration outside the Clayton G. Graham Public Safety Building.

Atlantic City police said the protest began peacefully before an altercation occurred and officers encountered demonstrators in areas that needed to remain clear for access to police headquarters.

Five people were arrested, including Moreno-Rodriguez, who was charged with obstruction of justice. A sixth person was issued a complaint.

El Pueblo Unido disputes the Police Department's characterization of events and is calling for the protest-related charges to be dismissed.

At Monday's news conference, Moreno-Rodriguez said the arrests would not deter the organization.

"Saturday did not silence us. Saturday did not break us. Saturday did not erase what our cameras have documented," Moreno-Rodriguez said.

The organization says its concerns extend beyond Saturday's confrontation to an earlier incident in which Moreno-Rodriguez followed vehicles believed to be associated with federal immigration officers.

Atlantic City police stopped Moreno-Rodriguez during that incident. Police Chief James Sarkos has said the stop resulted from observed traffic violations and not Moreno-Rodriguez's immigration advocacy.

El Pueblo Unido contends local officers improperly interfered with its efforts to document federal immigration enforcement.

Small Says City's Position Is Clear

Small said Monday that Atlantic City has previously explained the limits of its authority over federal immigration enforcement and that his administration will not promise actions it cannot legally deliver.

"We support the Hispanic community. My administration supports all communities," Small said.

But his comments also draw a clear line between sympathy with residents concerned about ICE tactics and support for the demands now being made of city government and police.

El Pueblo Unido says it intends to continue demonstrating every Saturday until its demands are addressed, setting up the possibility of continued protests as the dispute moves into another week.

Small, meanwhile, says his administration's position will remain the same: Atlantic City does not direct federal immigration enforcement, ACPD is not coordinating ICE operations, and the city will not establish the legal-defense fund requested by the organization.

Small made the comments Monday on Off The Press with Scott Cronick, heard weekdays from 1 to 3 p.m. on News Talk 1400 & 92.3 WOND.