MANHATTAN (KSNT) – The Riley County Police Department (RCPD) hosted a ‘town hall’ on Jan. 28 to address concerns in it’s community.
RCPD Director Brian Peete discussed topics varying from public safety to Manhattan’s homelessness issue.
The main topic of the ‘town hall’ was the community’s concerns regarding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as the agency continues to draw controversy throughout the country.
In Wednesday’s meeting, Peete ensured residents that Riley County does not have a 287 (g) agreement with ICE. Peete said should the agency enter its jurisdiction, it will do its best to protect and serve the community.
“If there is a member of the community that we may even know that they’re working to get, how can we work together to ensure the safety of the agents, plus the safety of the individual,” Peete told 27 News. “…how can we address potentially volatile situations with people who have no trust in ICE. How can we help facilitate safety for everybody while letting ICE do what their mission is, while ensuring our people that they’re safe.”
Peete believes that these conversations are important for the continued efforts to build trust within the community. Those sentiments are shared by residents of Riley County.
“I think, due to my own biases, I feel like they’re just saying what we want to hear. I do have some hope that they would protect us and actually do mean what they say and keep things civil,” Jocelyn Korenek said, a Manhattan resident. “I will have faith in that and will continue to assess the situation and judge RCPD based off how they respond to future circumstances.
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