Heather Curtis
WMAL.com

WASHINGTON (WMAL) – Dueling rallies will happen outside the Montgomery County Executive building in Rockville Friday. Help Save Maryland’s protesting the county’s sanctuary policies, while immigrant advocacy groups – including Montgomery County Stands with immigrants – will hold a rally of their own in support of the county’s policies.

People on both sides of the illegal immigration debate are coming out after news that seven illegal immigrants living in the county were arrested recently and charged with sexual assaults. A number of them were against children. Mauricio Barrera-Navidad, 29, of Damascus, and Carlos Palacios-Amaya, 28, of Gaithersburg, were both charged with second-degree rape for allegedly raping an 11-year-old girl on separate occasions in 2018. Then in July of 2019, Nestor Lopez-Guzman, 21, was arrested and charged with two counts of sex abuse of a minor for allegedly molesting two children in his family on multiple occasions. The incidents in Montgomery County come as tensions continue to grow between the Trump administration and sanctuary cities around the country that refuse to cooperate with ICE.

“The county is out of control, and that’s why we’re having this rally in Rockville,” Help Save Maryland Director, Brad Botwin, told WMAL’s Mornings on the Mall.

In July, County Executive Marc Elrich signed the Promoting Community Trust Executive Order, which prohibits county officials from asking people about their immigration status or working with ICE.

In a statement released Monday, Elrich said, “There has been some confusion about Montgomery County policy when it comes to undocumented individuals charged with serious crimes and how we interact with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). To clarify our policy, I met with ICE officials today at the Executive Office Building. While the meeting was generally introductory, I believe that the conversation was productive; and more discussions will follow. I continue to appreciate that Montgomery County is one of the safest and most inclusive places in the Washington Metropolitan Area and the rest of the United States.”

Botwin responded to the statement saying, “So we have, you know, eight 11 and 12-year-old females that were raped in the past month or so, and Elrich is having a conversation with ICE. No, it doesn’t give me warm fuzzies that we’re gonna solve this problem anytime soon in Montgomery county.”

Acting Director of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services office and former attorney general of Virginia, Ken Cuccinelli, called Elrich out on Twitter and challenged him to a debate about the county’s immigration policies. He told WMAL’s the Larry O’Connor Show last week that he had not heard back from Elrich. The county executive also didn’t return the WMAL news department’s request for comment.

“The Trump Administration has targeted Montgomery County in recent weeks, given our Community Trust Executive Order, in an attempt to spread fear. They have deployed a web of lies to demonize our neighbors and community, including via attacks on County Executive Marc Elrich and council members,” Montgomery County Stands with Immigrants wrote in a press release.

The group said the executive order enables all residents, regardless of their immigration status, to feel safe and welcome.

Cuccinelli said he doesn’t buy the county’s justification that it can’t cooperate with ICE because it needs illegal immigrants to feel safe reporting crimes. He said illegal immigrants living in Montgomery County are preying on members of their own communities.

Elrich told WMAL’s Mornings on the Mall the Contitution prevents them from holding a person after a sentence is served and said if ICE wants the county to hold people, the agency will have to go to a judge. He also denied that the county is a sanctuary county.

Montgomery County Stands with Immigrants will rally at 10:30 Friday morning outside the county executive building. Help Save Maryland’s rally starts at 11 a.m.

Copyright 2019 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (Photo: Marc Elrich for County Executive Facebook)