Protesters stood in front of ICE vehicles Thursday at a Rock Springs hotel while police said they used their cars as a blockade to seal off the parking lot exits, effectively trapping the federal officers in.
ICE officers summoned Rock Springs police for help, who cleared the way for the federal agents to leave town, police said. One of the people at the scene, however, said law enforcement is mischaracterizing the entire incident and spreading misinformation.
“If people were harassing, I think that’s wrong,” said Megan Pope, 24, of Rock Springs. “But no one harassed anyone.”
The contested standoff — or stare down — was just the latest clash between ICE and protesters taking place in the nation with tensions at all-time highs since federal officers shot and killed two protesters in Minnesota this month including 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday.
Wyoming, one of the nation’s most conservative states, has not served as much of a flashpoint on immigration enforcement issues as neighboring Colorado or other states.
Multiple sheriff’s offices have signed agreements to work in concert with federal immigration officers, with some local agencies forming special task forces, permitting immigration investigations inside of their jails and honoring immigration holds in their detention centers beyond the default 48-hour time limit.
But small groups of protesters have descended upon the Cheyenne capitol in recent weeks. Thursday’s confrontation, however, ratcheted up the intensity between ICE and activists in the Cowboy State with news of the demonstration circulating widely throughout the community on social media throughout the day.
According to Rock Springs police, demonstrators gathered at the Four Points Sheraton — formerly the Clarion Hotel — in the 2500 block of Foothill Boulevard on Thursday morning after learning that ICE officers had spent the night there.
A crowd formed around the agents’ vehicles “preventing them from leaving,” police said in a statement.
“Additionally, the crowd used their own vehicles to block the exit.”
They were stuck in the lot until police arrived “to help them leave Rock Springs,” the statement said.
In a video Pope provided to Cowboy State Daily, a small crowd could be seen gathered in the parking lot as three SUVs carrying the federal officers began to roll out.
“They’re leaving, they’re leaving, they’re leaving,” someone can be heard saying.
“They’re planning to get into the elementary school,” another person said.
The incident sparked rumors online of ICE actions elsewhere in Rock Springs including one police shot down involving the elementary school.
Event Sparked Rumors
A school resource officer seen at Pilot Butte Elementary School was not assisting federal agents. The officer was just helping with traffic, walking kids across the parking lot to school safely, police said.
“This was completely unrelated to the incident at the Clarion,” the department statement said.
The attention the hotel demonstration created caused both the Rock Springs Police Department and Sweetwater County sheriff to issue public messages.
“We recognize the complex political struggle in our nation right now,” Rock Springs police said in their statement. “Our job and our focus is to protect the safety and security of all people within Rock Springs.
“Lawful assembly will always be protected. Our priority remains the preservation of public peace; while we support the right to be heard, we will continue to take the necessary steps to uphold the laws that keep our community secure.”
In a lengthy statement, Sweetwater County Sheriff John Grossnickle said “Wyoming is better than harassment and intimidation.”
He called on residents to respect federal agents and not harass or follow law enforcement. The ICE officers at the hotel were off duty and eating when they were confronted, Grossnickle said.
“Let me be very clear,” Grossnickle said. “These actions do not represent how we live, work, or do business in Wyoming. We will not tolerate intimidation, stalking, harassment, or interference with any law enforcement officer, whether local, state, or federal. That behavior is unacceptable and has no place in our communities.”
Grossnickle said the First Amendment protects peaceful assembly and freedom of speech including respectful conversation, disagreement and lawful recording in public.
“You cross the line when you engage in aggressive, coercive or deceptive behavior intended to intimidate, harass, stalk, or interfere with law enforcement officers,” Grossnickle said.
Witness Says No Lines Crossed
Pope said none of the people she saw in the parking lot crossed the line.
She had just dropped her son at the nearby elementary school when she said she saw Rock Springs police and a small crowd in the hotel parking lot Thursday morning.
She estimated about eight people were gathered in the lot, all of them yards from the hotel entrance with most standing by their cars.
Pope had been on her way to grab coffee when she decided to pull into the hotel.
“I’m nosy,” she said. “Not gonna lie.”
In the parking lot, she saw ICE officers in masks and uniforms standing around SUVs. Among them, she said, was Greg Bovino, the controversial U.S. Border Patrol commander in charge of immigration enforcement in Minnesota — until Tuesday, when he was removed from his assignment after the fatal shooting of Pretti.
Cowboy State Daily could not reach U.S. Homeland Security officials to confirm Bovino's presence in Wyoming.
Pope said he was carrying a rifle and had waved to the onlookers.
Most in the crowd had their cellphones out, and only one person carried a protest sign.
Pope said no one was blocking the ICE vehicles, and no civilian cars were blocking exits.
Pope did say she arrived after Rock Springs police and does not know what took place before local law enforcement showed up.
Standing near her car, Pope pulled out her phone and began recording. She posted one of the videos with the caption:
“ICE here in town,” the caption said. “Greg Bovino and everything. Walking around with AR-15s and masks. Please protect yourselves and remember you have rights. #wyoming”
She continued recording and said no one confronted the ICE agents.
One onlooker asked a Rock Springs police officer: “Why are you protecting them?”
He responded, Pope said, “I’m protecting both of you guys.”
Pope watched as the ICE officers boarded the SUVs and left.
“It’s all false,” she said. “They were never blocked in. We were never threatening them with their lives.”
Since posting the video, she said, she has received several harassing messages. But also some of support.
Cooperation Between Feds And Locals
The Sweetwater County sheriff attempted to clear up any misconceptions in his public statement, saying his office maintains strong working relationships with federal agents including ICE. The Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office has the longest standing agreement to work with ICE of any Wyoming agency, pre-dating this Trump administration.
“If federal agents are operating in our community, it is not happening in a vacuum,” he said “We are aware of it and, when appropriate, we will share information with the public.”
He said “significant misinformation” has been circulating about what ICE was up to “including claims about unlawful detentions, door-to-door immigration checks, and demands to show papers.”
“Those claims do not reflect reality,” he said. “If we had any indication that an officer, local or federal, was acting unethically or unlawfully, we would be the first to speak up and act. Accountability matters.”
Grossnickle reminded residents that immigration policy is set by Congress. If people want policies changed, they need to seek out their elected representatives, he said.
“I recognize these situations can be unsettling for communities and painful for families,” Grossnickle said. “Immigration enforcement is complex, and while strong emotions are understandable, conclusions should be grounded in verified information rather than assumptions or speculation.”
“Targeting officers for enforcing laws they did not create increases the risk of someone getting hurt,” Grossnickle added. “I do not want to see anyone die, including officers, community members, or individuals subject to enforcement actions.”
A spokesman for ICE based in Denver referred questions to the Department of Homeland Security. Two hotel officials declined to speak, saying they were not authorized to comment and were not at the property during the morning's events.
Justin George can be reached at justin@cowboystatedaily.com.
