cbsnews.com

Highland Park activists installing ICE sirens to warn neighborhood

A grassroots effort in Los Angeles is working to install warning sirens to alert neighbors when federal immigration agents are spotted in the city's Highland Park neighborhood.Nelson Grande, a Highland Park native who is running for the Los Angeles City Council, is among the community members who are leading the effort to install the sirens. "Highland Park has seen a really big influx of raids," Grande said. "There's definitely a lot of uncertainty, and you can feel it throughout the community."Grande said his group started the movement by installing sirens on private property, with at least 20 already placed at homes and businesses. He said the sirens can be heard about half a mile away. "The reason this isn't going through the city right now is because of the sense of urgency," Grande said. "When the ICE raids are happening now, we don't have time to go through legislators and to go through that whole process." The group has not used the sirens yet. They plan to test and formally use them by the end of February. Residents and business owners with sirens use an app to activate them if they spot federal agents or receive a confirmed message that an immigration operation is underway.

The Los Angeles Police Department said the sirens could violate the city's noise ordinance. Citations could be issued if LAPD is called to the area. In a statement, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli warned activists that they could face prison time."I would admonish these anti-government activists that it is a federal crime to harbor or assist in harboring illegal aliens," he wrote. "They should familiarize themselves with 8 U.S.C. 1324(a), which carries a penalty of up to 5 years in federal prison."