Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: ICE access to Common House

[Pare Gerou (greekvillagecohousing]

Hi Bruce and all,

I really respect the dedication and care behind the Signs of Solidarity
effort. I do want to add a quick legal reality-check from my former life as
an immigration attorney (mostly asylum/refugee advocacy and
representation-- with a short stint as administrative adjudicator ).

Posting “private space / no entry without a judicial warrant” signs can be
helpful as a boundary marker or script for whatever neighbor who answers
the door. But the sign is *not legal protection in the way people hope*. If
ICE has only an administrative warrant (ICE/DHS forms), they can’t lawfully
enter private areas without consent. If they have a *judicial warrant
signed by a judge*, they can. This applies to private residences.

But a Common House isn’t the same as a private residence. Because it’s a
shared, multi-user space, ICE will often treat open/common areas that have
some restrictions as public-- unless access is clearly restricted in a way
that most Common Houses are not. Signs don’t turn the CH into a protected
private home or space, and a protected space is not sufficient (google
"solidarity movements in the US" and read the article about what
happened over the decades).

Oregon sanctuary law limits state/local cooperation with ICE — it doesn’t
stop ICE from operating in Oregon.

Most importantly, I want to name a hard line here: in a cohousing setting,
turning the Common House into a refuge specifically to help people avoid
ICE can put the entire community—and the very people we’re trying to
protect—at legal risk. Federal “harboring” laws are real, and my reading of
the facts- albeit without all the facts and without updated expertise of a
local immigration attorney- are not good.

Here are some proactive things you could do:

   - Mobilize the community to plan for the possibility of arrest and have
   things in place- an attorney retained, NGOs ready to contact,
   communications lines and knowledge of the detention facilities and who can
   enter, etc.
   - Make sure residents know the difference between a *judicial warrant*
   and an *ICE administrative warrant*, and that only designated people
   should deal with enforcement at the CH or talk to anyone attempting to come
   in.
   - Keep Know-Your-Rights cards/scripts at the CH, and train people not to
   consent to entry into private areas without a judicial warrant. I believe
   your reading of private areas may not be solid under the law and will
   be challenged.
   - Support neighbors emotionally in ways that don’t create a “hiding
   place”: rides to court/check-ins, accompaniment, childcare, food,
   fundraising for bonds/legal defense, emotional support, helping them
   connect to reputable local orgs.
   - If any neighbor is contemplating *formal sanctuary*, only do it
   through established Oregon networks and after a real risk/benefit consult
   with local immigration counsel.

I’m glad you’re talking with a local activist attorney. You already know
you must--Just to be clear, what I’m sharing here isn’t legal advice—only
general perspective from past experience, and I’m retired now. Once you get
formal guidance, I do know of cohousing communities that have faced similar
situations; if it would help, I can discreetly reach out and see whether
anyone is willing to speak with you confidentially about what they did.

And yes to cohousing solidarity: Doing some thoughtful, community-wide
planning in advance around how to support neighbors—within the law—would be
a really strong and caring step.

Pare Gerou (Evi)

Greek Village Cohousing

On Fri, Nov 21, 2025 at 5:14 AM Bruce Hecht <brucehe [at] peak.org> wrote:

> Hello All,
>
>
>
> We currently have ICE agents in Oregon detaining members of our immigrant
> community. My understanding is that ICE cannot enter a private residence
> without a Judicial Warrant. As part of an Indvisible.org Signs of
> Solidarity
> project we have offered signs to businesses that say "This is a Private
> Space" No Entry. Oregon is a Sanctuary Law state.
>
>
>
> Currently We have our immigrant neighbors using our Common House and
> wondering if posting these signs on our CH doors provides any type of legal
> protection. I plan to talk to a local activist attorney about this but
> wondering if anyone has done this or investigated doing so.
>
>
>
> In Solidarity,
>
>
>
> Bruce Hecht
>
>
>
> --
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