VISTA — The Vista City Council approved a resolution on Tuesday night outlining measures to support residents’ due process rights amid escalating immigration enforcement nationwide, a conversation that drew hundreds of attendees to the Civic Center.
Council members Corinna Contreras, Katie Melendez and Dan O’Donnell approved the resolution in a 3-2 vote, with Mayor John Franklin and Councilmember Jeff Fox opposed. Conversations about the resolution started in September, when the council majority first directed staff to pursue a formal resolution.
The approved resolution states that the city will share Know Your Rights information on its website and reiterates state law that prevents federal officers from accessing non-public areas of city property without a judicial warrant.
Examples of non-public city property include City Council members’ and certain staff members’ personal offices.
“It’s not saying ‘Don’t come to our city.’ It’s saying ‘bring the warrant, and we will fully comply with the request you have and welcome you in.’ It also does not bar any federal agents, immigration or otherwise, from entering the city and conducting business when they have a warrant,” O’Donnell said.
Lastly, the resolution prevents the city from sharing private or sensitive data collected from individuals with any outside organization or entity, except as required by law.
Initially, the proposed language also included a section saying that all city contracts would require a clause prohibiting contractors from disclosing personal or non-public information to federal law enforcement unless otherwise required by law. Some public speakers argued this was essential to protecting data privacy.
However, the council chose not to move forward with this section due to concerns that it was too vague. City Attorney Walter Chung said each clause would have to be different for each contract, which could lead to complications depending on the contractor, and noted that contractors are already required to follow all applicable state and federal laws.
Instead, the council chose to focus on protecting residents’ data on the city’s end.
Hundreds of residents attended the meeting, filling the chambers and a large overflow room where a live recording was played. More than 100 public comments, both in support of and against the resolution, were submitted over nearly 5 hours.
Before the meeting, a large crowd also gathered for a rally outside the Civic Center in support of the resolution, where Contreras joined them. The rally featured speakers, live music, and dancing, and many attendees held signs in Spanish and English, such as “Keep Families Together,” “Seguridad y Dignidad Para Todos,” and “Keep ICE Out of Vista.”
“I do want to thank the community for coming out. Clearly, you’re here because this is important to you, and for some of you, the immigration situation has deeply, deeply impacted your family,” Contreras told attendees after the vote.
The City Manager’s Office and City Attorney’s Office emphasized that the resolution would not result in changes to any current city practices. Staff also noted that there have been no cases of federal immigration enforcement in non-public areas of city property.
In response to councilmember questions, Vista Sheriff’s Capt. John Malen also confirmed that the resolution will have no negative impact on the department’s ability to do its job or on deputies’ safety, and that it will not help criminals in any way.
Franklin pushed back firmly against the resolution and claimed that those who spoke in support had been “bused” to the Civic Center by the San Diego Organizing Project, one of the groups that organized the rally. He also argued that it was not the city’s place to adopt this resolution.
“It has become inescapably clear to me that the individuals who support this resolution, in fact, support an open border. They support an end to the concept of citizenship at large,” Franklin said. “The constitution does require due process, and every person will receive it. They have and they will. But it is not the purview or the jurisdiction of this City Council to conduct due process review of the federal government.”
Community speaks out
The majority of speakers on Tuesday supported the resolution, advocating for Vista to stand up for its residents as immigration enforcement escalates under the Trump administration.
Some speakers cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling that permits federal agents to profile individuals based on race, as well as what they described as illegal and inhumane practices. This includes detaining people without a signed judicial warrant or while they are attending immigration court hearings, near schools and in front of children.
“Right now, families are living with constant crushing anxiety. Children are going to school wondering whether their parents will still be at home when they return,” said resident Vanessa Mendoza. “Wives and husbands are living each day with the fear that the person they love may be taken [from] them without warning. These are not distant or abstract harms.”
Many of the supporters were faith leaders and congregants from St. Francis of Assisi Church in Vista and other North County churches and faith institutions, who said they felt called to stand up for their neighbors in need.
Reverend Dr. Jaime Romo of Pilgrim United Church of Christ in Carlsbad read letters of support from his church, Saint Thomas Moore Church in Oceanside, St. Patrick’s Church in Carlsbad, the Tri-City Islamic Center Board, and Palomar Unitarian Church in Vista.
“We see that this is transcending local issues, and we come from various spiritual traditions to protect those who are being targeted and defamed. We hope you will find it in your hearts to leave aside the rhetoric that demonizes our brothers and sisters and to vote to implement the due process in public safety,” Romo said.
Several residents also spoke about how their own families had been impacted by deportation. Marlene Aberran, one of multiple students at Rancho Buena Vista High School who spoke, said she grew up without her father after he was deported.
“I am first-generation, and I grew up without a father since ICE had taken my dad when I was only four years old. Many of you have children whom you care for and look after every single day. I’m not asking for your sympathy, but I’m asking for you to imagine yourself being torn from your loved ones because you have brown skin,” Aberran said.
Among those who opposed the resolution, some expressed concerns that the city was impeding federal enforcement and making it harder to curb crime. Others said they supported immigrant rights, but worried the resolution wouldn’t make substantive change and would only make the city a target of the federal government.
“We need to be putting pressure on Congress to pass immigration reform. I mean, we’re wasting all this time tonight on something that really isn’t going to do anything except make some people feel better. But in reality, ICE will still come to Vista, and they will still assert federal authority as they should constitutionally,” said resident Travis Tibbits.
Others echoed Franklin’s claim that the resolution constituted a sanctuary city policy.
“The federal government is enforcing the law, and who’s most at risk when they do that? Our agents,” said resident Patty Kay. “These are not random episodes where the agents are going around picking up brown-skinned people. They are targeted because they have the intelligence, the background, and the information, where the illegal criminals are, and that is who they are getting.”
“Youre asking us to turn a blind eye to illegal immigration,” said resident Jill Parvin. “Let justice run its course.”
During the meeting, Franklin had tense exchanges with members of the public and fellow council members.
Speakers and some council members criticized Franklin for allegedly spreading misinformation ahead of the meeting by claiming the resolution was a sanctuary city policy. Some residents also called him out for posting on Nextdoor while people were making public comments during the meeting.
Franklin said he would not be intimidated by the public.
Melendez pushed back against Franklin’s rhetoric about community members attending the meeting, stating that his behavior was “unhinged.”
“I think it’s really dangerous for our mayor to be here lying and targeting our members of the community, and saying that you were bussed here, accusing you of being paid protesters. I think it’s highly inappropriate and strange, very strange, behavior,” she said.
O’Donnell also said Franklin disrupted a town hall that he recently held to share information about the proposed resolution, and claimed Franklin lied by stating that San Diego County Sheriff Kelly Martinez told O’Donnell not to vote for the resolution.
The two shouted back and forth at each other for some time.
At one point, the council discussed only approving the Know Your Rights campaign and delaying action on the other items until they could be further refined.
Franklin briefly said he would support this, but then said he would need to know more about what would be on the webpage.
“I couldn’t join you in ‘yes’ on a Know Your Rights website unless I knew what was going to be on it, and I knew that it was valid material that presented a point of view that was consistent with the views of the people of Vista,” he said.
Fox said he understood the value of the resolution as a way to show support for the community during a time of fear. However, he said he could not support it due to the potential negative impacts on the city resulting from being targeted.
“I was hearing a lot of people talking about fear, and you know, that’s something that showing support and all that does have some actual real value,” said Fox. “I can see some more optical solidarity pros and some very much, you know, potential negative repercussions for something like this.”
