Adrian Hedden
El Rito Media
achedden@currentargus.com

A Mescalero Apache tribal member was allegedly approached by a U.S. immigration enforcement agent in Ruidoso last week, tribal officials said, as rumors swirled of a federal presence throughout southern New Mexico.

In a statement, Mescalero Apache Tribe President Thora Walsh-Padilla said agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) questioned an enrolled tribal member Jan. 22 in Ruidoso in an unconfirmed “public place” and asked to see the tribe member’s passport.

The member provided a driver’s license and tribal identification, read the statement, and the agent left the area.

The name of the member and specific location of the alleged incident were not confirmed by the Tribe as of press time. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to a request for comment.

“While this is the only incident we have been able to verify, Tribal leadership is actively working with the New Mexico Congressional delegation to ensure the rights of Tribal members are protected,” read the statement from Walsh-Padilla.

She also urged tribal members to “be aware of your surroundings,” inform family members of one’s whereabouts and carry multiple forms of identification. The Tribe also published guidance for its members if approached by ICE agents to “be polite and respectful” and “remain calm.”

The Tribe advised members to ask for verification of the agent’s identity and to see a badge, to make a video or audio recording if possible, and to keep the door securely closed if approached at home and ask to see a warrant signed by a judge. If arrested or detained, the Tribe advised members to not resist and to exercise their constitutional right to remain silent.

Similar advice was shared by the Navajo Nation, based in northwest New Mexico, in a Jan. 22 Facebook post by Nation President Buu Nygren.

“My office has received several concerns and unconfirmed reports that our urban Diné relatives are being questioned and detained by immigration officials,” Nygren wrote. “My office is looking into this matter and will provide updates as they come.”

It is not clear why ICE agents would be questioning Tribe members, but the Tribe’s statement about the passport incident said the ICE officer approached the tribal member speaking Spanish and the member asked the agent to speak English.

Members of sovereign Indigenous tribes are legal U.S. citizens, according to the U.S. Department of Justice, and are not subject to immigration enforcement actions such as being detained or deported. They are also citizens of the states they live in as well as citizens of their tribes based on criteria set out by each tribal government.

Trump’s border policy draws ire from New Mexico

The alleged incident came on the heels of a Jan. 22 executive order from President Donald Trump, about a week after he took office, to close U.S. borders to immigrants and deport undocumented residents throughout the U.S.

New Mexico’s southwestern border abuts the U.S. international border with Mexico, where migrants traveling into the U.S. are frequently processed at crossings near Santa Teresa and Alamogordo.

“Illegal immigration costs our country billions and billions of dollars each year…And I will therefore take every lawful action at my disposal to address this crisis. And that’s what we’re doing,” read a statement from Trump included with the executive order.

As Trump’s efforts to enforce border security intensified in the early days of his presidency, border states such as New Mexico could see the start of heightened enforcement and deportations of immigrants to Mexico and countries in Central and South America.

In response to the concerns, New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez published guidance to local leaders in anticipation of increased federal presence in response to Trump’s immigration policies and how those policies might affect the undocumented in “sensitive locations” such as churches and schools.

The publication provided details on the difference between judicial warrants enforced by local law enforcement and administrative warrants issued by ICE. The report stated that ICE warrants are not recognized under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, and agents can only detain individuals if they have “reasonable suspicion” the suspect violated federal immigration laws or if the agent witnessed a person illegally crossing into the U.S.

“Our priority is to protect New Mexico’s families, especially children, from policies that create fear and destabilize communities,” Torrez said. “We are committed to upholding the rule of law and ensuring public safety, but we must also safeguard the ability of families and children to access education, healthcare, and justice without fear of persecution.”

Torrez also joined 17 other states in suing the federal government challenging the constitutionality of another Trump executive order, issued Jan. 20, calling for an end to “birthright citizenship,” which guarantees U.S. citizenship to children born in the U.S. even if their parents are not citizens.

The states requested a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction against the order to prevent from taking effect while the issue is being litigated.

Other plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts were the states of New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Michigan, Colorado, Delaware, Nevada, Hawaii, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont, Wisconsin and North Carolina, along with the District of Columbia and the city of San Francisco.

“We will not stand by as this administration attempts to dismantle the principles of equality and justice that define who we are as Americans,” Torrez said. “New Mexico, alongside our partner states, is taking decisive action to defend the Constitution and protect the rights of all our children.”