No secret policing

Federal agents wearing body armor and carrying assault rifles descended on a Sandusky convenience store on June 5 and took a man away in cuffs. About a week prior, U.S. Border Patrol took another man into custody somewhere in Sandusky, claiming he was a gang member who was in the country illegally. But what exactly happened in both of these incidents? Those federal authorities won't say. Border Patrol hasn't released the identities of either man, nor have they released much of any information on the circumstances of the arrests, what charges they're accused of or where they're being incarcerated. Multiple requests made by the newspapers to Border Patrol for that information have not been answered. It's not the first time federal agencies have operated in secrecy in the Sandusky area. In the most memorable example, hundreds of Border Patrol and ICE agents took 114 people into custody in Perkins Township on June 5, 2018. On the day of the raid, the federal agencies told our newspapers they were not releasing the names of the people taken to custody. "Privacy reasons" for the individuals in custody was what the agencies cited, and some research indicates this is a common refrain from ICE and Border Patrol that falls under a federal law prohibiting the release of detainee information. That kind of secrecy flies in the face of Ohio state law, which generally requires law enforcement to identify those who have been arrested. In permitting law enforcement to take people off the streets and into a cell without having to identify the person, it seems this is a system that could be easily abused. We must be able to review law enforcement arrests — no matter the circumstances — to ensure that those in positions of power are not taking advantage of or misusing their authority. Transparency is crucial in order to hold law enforcement agencies accountable. It's been weeks since these two arrests in Sandusky — and these are just the ones we know about. We call on federal authorities to release records and not conduct their business in the shadows.