Bend community groups call for Mayor Sally Russell’s resignation
Mayor says city is still trying to fill in information gaps from federal agents
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Tempers flared during last week's ICE bus standoff between protesters and federal agents, and the impacts continue to reverberate.
On Thursday morning, a small group gathered outside Bend's City Hall to express their discontent with the city and Mayor Sally Russell's handling of the situation.
At Wednesday night's meeting, the city council agreed to have the city form a human rights and equity commission, part of its recent efforts at diversity, equity and inclusion amid nationwide scrutiny over those issues.
The mayor also opened the session by providing an official statement on the events of last week.
"Bend resources are not, will not, and cannot be used to support federal agencies with matters of immigration," she said. "It's the law in Oregon; we live in a sanctuary state. Bend is a welcoming city."
Despite these efforts, the mayor came under fire during the meeting from callers who said they felt she lacked leadership throughout the ordeal.
Mecca Bend's Janet Llerandi accused Russell of sending out "ill-informed" tweets the day of the ICE arrests, claiming the two men had warrants out for their arrest.
"Bend is a welcoming city, only if you have a piece of paper from the federal government," Llerandi said. "You, us, we them, are deemed illegal on our homelands."
Mecca Bend representatives said they believe the mayor is incompetent on matters of immigration law.
In response, Russell told NewsChannel 21 Thursday afternoon, "I know that my community counts on me to provide the information that I have at the time."
"We asked the (federal) Department of Homeland Security for information, and they didn't fill in any of the gaps, so we don't have the complete picture," she said.
Since last week's protest, the mayor and new Police Chief Mike Krantz told us they have asked for more information about the detention of the two men, but they both say they feel left in the dark by the federal government.
"My intent was to always communicate with our community with the best information I had," Russell said. "Everyone needs to know that."
