Police Tap School Security Cameras to Aid Federal Immigration Raids
Local police departments across the United States are reportedly accessing school security camera systems to assist federal agents in carrying out immigration enforcement raids. This revelation comes from a new investigative report published jointly by The Guardian and the nonprofit education news organisation The 74.
Texas School Districts Grant Camera Access Amid Trump Crackdown
The report details how Texas school districts have permitted law enforcement agencies to utilise their surveillance infrastructure. This development unfolds against the backdrop of President Donald Trump's promised largest deportation operation in American history, which has intensified pressure on federal immigration authorities to significantly increase arrests of undocumented individuals.
According to the report, which analysed hundreds of thousands of audit logs, local police are also searching a national license plate reader database for immigration-related investigations. The school districts in question employ cameras from the Atlanta-based company Flock Safety, devices that capture, among other data, vehicle license plate numbers.
Flock Safety's Role and Customer Data Policies
Flock Safety clarified in a January blog post that it does not engage in direct partnerships with the Department of Homeland Security or its sub-agency, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). However, the company explicitly stated that the data collected by its license plate readers is owned by its customers—in this case, the school districts. Consequently, these customers retain full authority over how their collected data is shared with third parties, including law enforcement.
Specific Cases in Houston-Area School Districts
The investigation identified two school districts near Houston that have allowed such access. The Huffman Independent School District granted U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) access to its license plate readers in May. A spokesperson for the district confirmed they were "reviewing the matters you referenced."
More strikingly, data from the Alvin Independent School District showed that from December 2025 through early January, over 3,000 law enforcement agencies conducted more than 733,000 searches on the district's camera systems. Immigration-related reasons were cited 620 times by 30 of those agencies during these searches.
Broader Impact on Communities and Schools
The aggressive immigration enforcement is having a profound effect on daily life, particularly within educational settings. A December 2025 paper from the UCLA Institute for Democracy, Education and Access found that more than two-thirds of high school principals reported students from immigrant families expressing fears for their or their family's well-being due to immigration policies or political rhetoric.
The Case of Liam Conejo Ramos
A poignant example emerged in January when a photograph of five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos being taken into federal custody, wearing his Spiderman backpack, went viral. The child and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, were approached by ICE agents outside their home in a Minneapolis suburb after returning from preschool.
The Department of Homeland Security stated the child was taken into custody for his own safety. However, a local school official who witnessed the event contested this, suggesting other adults could have cared for the child. DHS labelled the father an "illegal alien from Ecuador," while the family's lawyer, Marc Prokosch, asserted the father was a legitimate asylum seeker and not an illegal immigrant. Both were later released following a federal judge's order.
Columbia Heights Public Schools disclosed last month that four students, including Conejo Ramos, have been detained by ICE, with a school official stating such ICE activity is "inducing trauma" within the school community.
The Independent has contacted DHS, ICE, CBP, the Huffman and Alvin Independent School Districts, and Flock Safety for comment on these findings.
