EXCLUSIVE: Glendale Police Department Is Holding People For ICE In The City Jail And Getting Paid For It
Using an agreement with ICE/DHS from 2007, the city of Glendale is working with federal immigration agents in support of deportation efforts.
Publisher’s note: A video report about this same issue was produced by the West Side Storytellers, the same reporters who wrote this article. It can be viewed here.
Major Update June 8th, 2025: Following this reporting, the city of Glendale has cancelled their contract with ICE/DHS.
Glendale Police Department (GPD) is assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) by holding people in the city jail. At least two individuals who were taken by ICE after they appeared for their immigration court hearing were put into GPD’s jail and then later transferred to other detention facilities.
City spokesperson Annette Ghazarian stated that the city “has a contract with ICE, and yes, on occasion, ICE detainees will be given bed space at our facility.”
The contract went into effect in 2007 and granted ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) access to Glendale’s jail. The agreement, officially titled an “Inter-Governmental Service Agreement” (IGSA) states that the people taken by ICE to Glendale’s jail are held to “assure presence for removal from the United States…”
The California Values Act, commonly referred to as sanctuary law, prohibits cities and local police agencies from using their resources to assist ICE. It was signed into law in 2017 and went into effect on January 1st, 2018. It is unclear whether the IGSA is compliant with state law, but a legal expert and immigration attorney Inadvertent spoke to explained that it likely has to do with the Values Act not being a retroactive law. According to them, it means that IGSA may be compliant because it predates sanctuary law.
Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office stated that they are “We’re unable to provide legal advice or analysis, but we continue to monitor compliance with SB 54, SB 29, and all other applicable state laws.”
At Glendale’s city council meeting last night, the mayor and a council member did not shy away from the existence and use of the IGSA. Council member Elen Asatryan stated that there was a previous discussion before President Trump took office in January in that the council gave “clear information from [GPD] that [they] do not get involved.”
She went on to say that “They are using the cell as a holding place in the city of Glendale.”
A 2017 city of Glendale resolution referred to the IGSA and showed that the city is paid $85 a day, per person. The report stated that in 2015, the city was paid $1,190 and then in 2016, $6,035. It stated that the contract continues “indefinitely” and “may be terminated by either party with sixty days’ written notice.”
Sarah Houston is a managing attorney at Immigration Defenders, an organization that provides legal assistance to people impacted by the immigration system, and represents one of the individuals that was taken by ICE to Glendale’s jail. In a video interview, Houston stated that because the city’s jail is not subject to regulations that typical ICE detention facilities are, it is difficult to gauge whether people are receiving the care needed and standard conditions are met during incarceration. Houston stated that she visited her client at the GPD jail.
Houston gave a public comment at the council meeting requesting that the city move away from the contract.
Mayor Ara Najarian later replied from the dais, “...our jails are way better than county jail. Kiefer Sutherland paid up to $500 a night to stay in our jail to avoid [county jail].”
The mayor, city council, police chief, and police department spokesperson did not respond to questions by publishing time.
An ICE spokesperson stated, “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s enhanced enforcement operations and routine daily operations have resulted in a significant number of arrests of [people] that require greater detention capacity. While we cannot confirm individual pre-decisional conversations, we can confirm that ICE is exploring all options to meet its current and future detention requirements.”
They did not address specific questions about the Glendale and ICE collaboration.
This is a developing story.
Update June 5, 2025 3:07 P.M.: This article has been updated to include that the legal expert we spoke to is also an immigration attorney. It was also updated to include a statement from ICE which we edited to remove dehumanizing language from.
Update June 6, 2025 5:05 P.M.: This has been updated to include a response from Attorney General’s office.
Update June 9, 2025 9:16 A.M.: A correction regarding the statement from the AG’s office has been made.
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