Local community activists rallied on Friday, June 20, outside the Van Nuys Police Department Valley Jail Section to demand the release of Anthony Orendorff, who was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) during a raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
He is currently being held on a misdemeanor battery charge.
The rally was led by his sister, Carla Orendorff, his girlfriend and mother, as well as 30 supporters from different activist groups. Although they waited until the late afternoon to see if they could get Anthony Orendorff released on bail through the Van Nuys Courthouse, his case was not heard. They will have to wait until next week for a possible hearing.
On June 19, ICE agents conducted several raids throughout the Northeast San Fernando Valley, including at a Lowe’s in Pacoima. When Anthony Orendorff and other activists heard about people being detained, they went out to the locations to capture footage they could provide to immigration legal services.
Due to the growing crowd coming to protest ICE agents being in their community, the LAPD Foothill Division arrived at the scene to control the crowd. At one point, three people present were arrested by the LAPD, including Anthony Orendorff. Police claim this was because someone had laid their hands on an officer.
Carla Orendorff, a community activist herself, wasn’t present for the raids. She didn’t know what happened to her brother until she heard the news through social media. Since then, she’s been contacting not only other activists but local officials, including LA City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, to get her brother released.
After the raids, Rodriguez and City of San Fernando Vice Mayor Mary Solorio put out a video through social media informing their constituents of what had happened and where people could report ICE in their community. At the end of the video, Solorio said that police, whether they be LAPD or from the San Fernando Police Department (SFPD), are there to keep the community safe and they are not associated with or helping ICE.
However, Carla Orendorff refutes that.
“I just think that’s clearly not true in this case,” she said. “I think the fact that you have the LAPD working directly with ICE is unacceptable, and it contradicts what elected officials are claiming. … It’s unacceptable and he [Anthony Orendorff] needs to be released as soon as possible.”
We will continue coverage of this story.