Issaquah on edge after ICE arrest outside preschool

A series of immigration arrests has shaken an Issaquah preschool community over the past week. The arrests have also had a ripple effect throughout the city’s education system.

When Fatima Escareno — a U.S. citizen and owner of the Learning Nest Preschool in Issaquah — was pulled over by a white Ford Explorer on the highway Tuesday morning the man who stepped out didn’t identify himself. He then asked her for “documents.”

“I didn't know if it was police, state patrol, ICE, [or] who [else they would be],” Escareno said, “because [there was] no introduction at all.”

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She asked the unidentified man, "Did I do something wrong?”

The man didn’t believe her REAL ID was valid. He didn't let Escareno go until she showed him her U.S. passport, she said.

Escareno believes she’s being targeted for speaking to journalists and publicizing images of an immigration officer who arrested a woman last week after he followed the woman to Learning Nest, a Spanish immersion preschool, to drop off her child.

The woman involved in that incident remains in immigration detention. She was pursuing legal status in the U.S. through an asylum claim, and had been previously deported, according to reporting from King 5.

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Escareno first thought that her surprise traffic stop was by a State Patrol officer, but now she’s not so sure.

Washington State Patrol says they don’t have any records of a traffic stop like Escareno’s, and don’t ask for people’s immigration information when interacting with the public. The Keep Washington Working Act, passed in 2019, prohibits local law enforcement from using public resources for civil immigration enforcement.

“In short, immigration is a federal matter and simply not our lane of enforcement or responsibility,” said Chris Loftis, director of public affairs with the Washington State Patrol.

Meanwhile, Washington residents report being pulled over on suburban exits and on-ramps of major freeways by immigration enforcement. The State Patrol has also received reports that state troopers have been asking for immigration documents, according to Loftis.

“We have investigated every report, reviewing bodycam footage, etc., and we have not found actual evidence of a single trooper doing this even once,” he said. “It is common for members of the public to assume they are dealing with the State Patrol if they do not see a recognizable badge or agency patch on some uniformed personnel.”

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Loftis advises people who are being pulled over by people who may or may not be law enforcement in unmarked vehicles to turn on their hazard lights and drive to a public area — like the closest fire or police station, and call 911 if they can’t figure out whether someone is actually law enforcement.

“These are unique times and there is heightened fear and anxiety about these issues in many quarters,” Loftis said. “The vast majority law enforcement agencies and their personnel — be they local, county, state, or federal — are out there to help you be safe and to enforce regulations predicated on our laws and public safety.”

But there’s a rift between where the law stands, and who it protects for Escareno.

She doesn’t feel like she can turn to local governments or law enforcement for help, because of the recent arrest that happened on her private property. Now her preschool is planning for what could happen if she or her daycare are approached by immigration again.

“Because nobody else is going to come and protect us apparently,” she said.

Federal immigration enforcement officers can stop people regardless of whether they know someone is deportable or not — including using race as a basis for the stop. Escareno said she worries for her employees.

“I'm not going to let anything happen to my employees," she said. "I'm not going to let anyone come and intimidate them or take them or detain them without any reason.”

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What happened to her and at her pre-school is part of a series of actions by federal immigration enforcement have alarmed the greater Issaquah community as well.

The Issaquah School District has reported an uptick of absences because families are concerned about sending their kids to class after recent immigration enforcement, school officials said.

“Some of our community members have also reached out to us, wanting to help,” wrote a spokesperson for the school district. “Such as helping other families’ students get to school.”

District administrators released an announcement to the families of high school students Tuesday saying there has been no ICE activity on their school campuses this week after concerns were raised. If there was any immigration enforcement looking for a student or employee near school grounds they told families they would ask for a copy of a court order or a warrant for an arrest and forward it to school district administrators.

The announcement said that document “must be verified by our district’s Superintendent or designee and legal counsel prior to any next steps.”