Eugene’s independent police auditor, Craig Renetzky, said his office concluded its review of the Eugene Police Department’s July 1 actions during a protest involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement staff outside the Federal Building near Sixth Avenue and Pearl Street in downtown Eugene.
The review, published Sept. 22, determined Eugene Police did not assist ICE in any manner and did not engage in prohibited activity in violation of local policy and Oregon law.
“The evidence clearly shows a police presence at the scene, but this in and of itself is not a violation of the relevant statute, policies, procedures and regulations,” the police auditor said, explaining his office reviewed body-worn camera footage from police personnel, incident reports, dispatch reports and other documents after receiving numerous complaints about the event.
ICE detention protesters wave signs as a vehicle leaves the Federal Building in Eugene July 1, 2025.
What happened at the protest?
On July 1, the Party for Socialism and Liberation in Eugene called on locals to take action in a nationwide “Call Out Sick” protest in solidarity with immigrants who the protestors said were being arrested at routine ICE appointments, detained and sent to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington.
Dozens of people showed up, chanting phrases like, “No fear, no hate, no ICE in our state,” and carrying signs that read “ICE out of Lane County” and “Families belong together and free.”
The police auditor said officers responded after receiving a request for assistance from an outside agency. They gathered additional details about the nature of the request and once they determined it was immigration related, declined to intervene and instead maintained a physical presence in the area for observation.
No protesters were arrested or detained. A report was taken about damage to a vehicle belonging to ICE.
Haleigh Kochanski is a breaking news and public safety reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at HKochanski@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Auditor finds Eugene police did not collude with immigration officials