CANBY, Ore. – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested four farmworkers early Thursday morning, August 7, as they traveled from Woodburn to Canby for blueberry picking work, prompting legal challenges and public condemnation from immigrant rights groups.
According to attorneys from Innovation Law Lab and advocates with Oregon for All, ICE agents stopped the workers’ van around 6 a.m., allegedly breaking the driver’s side window during the encounter. Four people — three men and one woman — were taken into custody, while two women and a teenage girl were released.
Community and Advocacy Response
Reyna Lopez, executive director of farmworker union PCUN, accused ICE of targeting vulnerable workers.
“ICE is terrorizing the very people who feed our communities,” Lopez said. “These tactics will scare folks from working during peak harvest, threatening farmworkers’ livelihoods and the food supply.”
The arrested workers are members of the Mam Nation, Indigenous to Guatemala. Advocates say language barriers compounded the trauma, as the group had limited understanding of their rights. Puma Tzoc, of the Collective of Indigenous Interpreters of Oregon, called the arrests “a violation of their rights” and demanded respect for Indigenous nations.
Denied Access to Legal Counsel
Advocates from Innovation Law Lab attempted to meet the detainees at ICE’s Portland facility but were refused entry.
Isa Peña, the group’s director of strategy, said:
“ICE’s refusal to allow attorneys to speak with detainees violates basic due process rights. We’re seeing a pattern of ICE acting with impunity.”
Emergency Legal Action
Attorneys have filed an emergency habeas corpus petition on behalf of one detainee, identified as L-J-P-L-, who fled Guatemala after his brother’s murder and is seeking asylum. He had been released from immigration custody in February 2024 and complied with all legal requirements before his sudden arrest.
The petition claims his detention is arbitrary, violates due process under the Fifth Amendment, and constitutes an abuse of discretion under the Administrative Procedure Act. It also seeks to block his transfer out of the district.
A federal court has ordered ICE and the Department of Homeland Security to justify his detention by August 13; a hearing is set for August 19.
Wider Implications for Oregon Agriculture
The Oregon Farm Bureau and other groups have warned that aggressive immigration enforcement threatens the state’s agricultural sector, where immigrant labor accounts for over 30% of the workforce and nearly 62% of general farm laborers.
The arrests come amid ongoing political disputes over Oregon’s sanctuary state status. Both Portland Mayor Keith Wilson and Governor Tina Kotek have reaffirmed commitments to the Sanctuary Promise Act of 2021, despite federal pressure to roll back such protections.
Ongoing Case
As legal advocates prepare for the August court hearing, they argue this incident is part of a broader national trend of using immigration detention as a punitive tool against asylum seekers. ICE has not publicly commented on the arrests.
Advocates are continuing to monitor the detainees’ status and mobilize community support for their release.
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