LOS ANGELES (AP) — Homeland Security officers visited two Los Angeles public elementary schools this week to do a welfare check on migrant children, not for immigration enforcement, the department said Friday.
The officers were denied access by both principals. The department’s explanation followed harsh criticism by Superintendent Alberto Carvalho of the Los Angeles Unified School District, who said the agents lied to school staff that they had been authorized by the children’s parents and caretakers to go to their schools.
“We have confirmed that that is a falsehood,” Carvalho said at a news conference on Thursday. “We’ve spoken with the caretakers of these children, in some cases parents, and they deny any interaction with these entities, and certainly deny providing authorization for these individuals to have any contact with these children at the school.”…