Canton police and Plymouth-Canton Community Schools said they had no advance knowledge of immigration enforcement activity near an elementary school Tuesday morning, Oct. 20, which prompted officials to shelter students and staff inside for more than an hour.
The Canton Police Department said the school district placed Hulsing Elementary School under a shelter-in-place order around 10 a.m. after police learned that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were conducting what police described as a “special enforcement” operation in the area.
Canton police officers then worked with the school to ensure students and staff remained safely secured in the building, Police Director Joseph Bialy said in a statement posted by the department.
The
shelter-in-place alert ended just over an hour later, after law enforcement determined it was safe, police said. The alert ended without incident.
Neither Canton police nor Plymouth-Canton Community Schools knew about or participated in the ICE enforcement activity, according to the police department.
U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, said the enforcement operation near the school "understandably caused fear and concern throughout the community." She also said Canton police had not been notified in advance.
The ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Detroit Field Office could not be reached for comment as of Monday afternoon.
Dingell said she spoke with ICE and that the agency acknowledged issues with the Oct. 20 operation. She said she plans to continue working with ICE and the Canton Township supervisor to address the concerns.
Nour Rahal is a trending and breaking news reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Email her at nrahal@freep.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: ICE operation near Canton elementary school prompts shelter-in-place
