At 2 o’clock on Tuesday, Jan. 20, about 200 protesters gathered in front of Austin City Hall to demand that the Austin Police Department stop collaborating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities.
An hour later, several Austin advocacy groups, including Hands Off Central TX, delivered a petition with over 10,000 signatures to city officials that specifically demands that APD stop aiding ICE in carrying out “administrative warrants” to deport Austinites.
Mayor Pro Tem Vanessa Fuentes and other city officials accepted the petition at the front doors, as the crowd chanted “No more ICE!” Dozens more lined up against West Cesar Chavez, hoisting signs reading “Immigrants Have Rights,” “Abolish ICE,” and “ICE Out of Austin.” Students skipped class for the planned walkout, and a few draped Mexican flags over their shoulders.
A federal administrative warrant was cited by APD as the reason the department contacted ICE authorities after Karen Gutiérrez Castellanos called 911 from her Oak Hill home on the morning of Jan. 5. Within hours, Gutiérrez Castellanos and her 5-year-old child, a U.S. citizen, were detained and later deported to Honduras, as first reported by Univision.
“APD is choosing to go above and beyond what is legally required of them to do,” Sulma Franco, an organizer with the nonprofit Grassroots Leadership, said at the protest. “What this collaboration will do is make our community and our city less safe.”
An administrative warrant authorizes an ICE agent to make an arrest for a suspected immigration violation. What sets it apart from a judicial warrant is that it is issued by the federal agency and not a judicial court, it is not reviewed or signed by a judge, and it does not authorize ICE to conduct a search, according to the National Immigration Law Center.
“But our neighborhoods are going to continue to face this action, and we need to continue to stand together, because if we don’t, it will get worse and worse,” Ry Vaz, a protester and local activist, said. “We want to keep our neighbors safe and our community secure.”
The protesters also called for APD to refuse a higher level of partnership with ICE authorities through what’s called the 287(g) Program. Under Senate Bill 8, which became law Jan. 1, local Texas sheriffs must decide to enter one of three programs by the end of 2026, potentially further deputizing APD officers to perform the duties of ICE agents.
“We call on APD and our leaders in the city of Austin to be courageous, to stand with our immigrant communities, now and always. Remember, ICE is not part of our community. Our immigrant neighbors are,” Franco continued.
Immigration lawyer Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, a Texas House candidate, also took the mic at the protest. “APD, we hear the pressure you’re under, but you may not violate the Constitution.”
City Council members have also called for clarity and a revision of APD’s policy for when they encounter administrative warrants. “Our understanding is that these revisions will ensure that APD officers know that administrative warrants are discretionary, non-judicial requests by ICE,” Mike Siegal, Zo Qadri, Krista Laine, and Paige Ellis wrote in a Jan. 14 joint statement.
“We share a commitment to doing everything we can to keep immigration enforcement
out of the relationship between our constituents and our police,” they continued.
Nonetheless, federal immigration enforcement continues in the Austin area. On Jan. 15, the city of Buda and the Kyle Police Department announced that ICE operations are underway in their jurisdictions, clarifying that they are not involved.
On the morning of Jan. 15, the Hays County Sheriff’s Office received a call from ICE requesting an ambulance for a person being detained by federal authorities. During the arrest, the local man had sustained injuries severe enough to be transported to a hospital, accompanied by Homeland Security personnel, according to the KPD.
“The presence of ICE agents in our neighborhoods undermines public safety, erodes community trust, and puts vulnerable families at risk,” advocacy group Mano Amiga wrote in a Jan. 15 statement. “When federal agents operate in our streets, they turn everyday interactions into moments of trauma for children, workers, and neighbors who simply want to live without fear.”
This article appears in January 23 • 2026.