ICE took 3 people into custody from SLO County Jail. Here’s what happened
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents took three people into custody from the San Luis Obispo County Jail on Tuesday afternoon, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.
“Two individuals ICE contacted had detainers that met Senate Bill 54 requirements: One for prior qualifying charges and one for current charges,” Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Grace Norris said in a statement to The Tribune.
Senate Bill 54 prohibits local law enforcement from transferring inmates to ICE or detaining individuals at the request of ICE, but the law does have exceptions for individuals with qualifying prior convictions, current convictions or federal arrest warrants. Qualifying crimes include murder, sexual abuse, assault, unlawful possession of a firearm and other serious or violent felonies.
An immigration detainer is a request from ICE to notify the agency before an inmate is released from custody, or to hold the inmate in custody for 48 hours longer than usual, so ICE has time to pick them up.
Both people had posted bail, so they were no longer in custody at the jail when ICE contacted them, she said.
Additionally, ICE took a third person from the jail on a federal warrant, she said.
Norris said the Sheriff’s Office would not provide further details on the incident.
The Truth Act requires local law enforcement agencies to tell an inmate and their attorney if ICE has been notified of their release date and time.
The Sheriff’s Office did not immediately confirm if these inmates were notified about ICE before they were released from jail custody.
Volunteer describes ICE agents taking 2 people into custody from SLO Jail
When a volunteer with the 805 Rapid Response Hotline stopped by the jail at 1:29 p.m., he said he saw a Ford Expedition with a Department of Homeland Security license plate in the parking lot.
The man spoke to The Tribune on the condition of anonymity to protect himself from retaliation by ICE or his employer.
The rapid responder said he parked and entered the lobby, where he saw two officers wearing bulletproof vests and ICE baseball caps. When he started filming, the ICE agents put masks over their mouths.
Several people exited the jail release doors into the lobby, and the officers didn’t react, he said.
Then, at 1:56 p.m., a man in a wheelchair exited the jail release doors. The ICE agents approached the man and spoke to him in Spanish, the rapid responder said.
The rapid responder tried to tell the man in Spanish that he had a right to remain silent and refuse to sign papers, but one of the agents approached the responder, tried to block his phone camera and told him if he got any closer to the man in the wheelchair he would be interfering with an investigation, he said.
The agent threatened to arrest him multiple times, the responder said.
“I was scared s--tless,” he told The Tribune.
The agents asked the man in the wheelchair to confirm his name, then escorted him into the parking lot. Outside, they continued to question the man until he was in tears, the responder said.
Eventually, a Chevrolet Express van with a Department of Homeland Security license plate, number 304272, rolled into the parking lot and picked the man up.
One of the ICE agents once again stood in front of the responder to prevent him from filming the moment when the man entered the transport van. The ICE agent threatened to arrest him again, the responder said.
“They were playing a lot of games with me,” he said.
After the man was detained, five people returned to the jail lobby. At least two wore ICE baseball caps, while the others had ICE or Department of Homeland Security printed on their hats or vests, he said.
The responder told The Tribune that one of the ICE agents then told him he needed to get a life and a job and that no one cared about him. The ICE agent also tried to justify his work, the responder said.
“It felt like a conversation with the devil,” he said.
At 2:20 p.m., another man exited the jail release door into the lobby. The ICE agents approached him and “basically just grabbed that guy” and put him into a different Chevrolet Express van, the responder said.
The van’s license plate number was 304271, the responder said.
Finally, at 2:32 p.m. the jail opened its gate for a Ford Expedition with a Department of Homeland Security license plate, number 380471. The Ford drove into the jail, and the gate closed behind it.
When a Tribune reporter arrived at the scene, about five rapid responders were gathered in the parking lot discussing the incident.
At 3 p.m., another Ford Expedition abruptly drove into the parking lot, hit reverse, turned around, and the officer rolled down his window. He gestured at the volunteers in the parking lot to come closer. Then he yelled “suckers!” and drove away.
The volunteer then saw the Ford Expedition that previously entered the jail gate drive away. He told The Tribune he thought the first ICE agent was distracting him from filming the Ford’s exit from the jail.
To volunteer with the 805 Rapid Response Team, people can sign up for a training online at 805undocufund.org/get-involved. Call the rapid response hotline at 805-870-8855 to report ICE sightings.
This story was originally published October 22, 2025 at 12:27 PM.
