Monday, November 17, 2025

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A Native American woman and her family are thankful that she’s not been detained – and potentially deported – by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Brian Bull of Buffalo’s Fire has the story.

On Veteran’s Day, 24-year-old Leticia Jacobo completed a short sentence at the Polk County Jail in Des Moines, Iowa for a traffic infraction. She was supposed to have been released at midnight, but things took an odd turn.

“I don’t know how to put it in words. It was, it was shocking. I was like, “How do I have a ICE hold, when I’m Native American? And, yeah, it was just weird. It was just crazy.”

Jacobo’s mom, Ericka Burns, learned that her daughter was placed under an ICE detainer and was worried.

Both women are members of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, and therefore legal U.S. citizens.

Jacobo’s aunt, Maria Nunez, said her sister sprung into action.

“And being a holiday that day, we couldn’t do much. And you know, here on her reservation side of the family we just jumped on the media, and reached out to everyone and however we could. Because we didn’t want her removed and sent to who knows where.”

Nunez says the tribal police chief called in to corrections officials to vouch for Jacobo’s citizenship. And an investigator learned that another inmate at the jail had the same last name as Jacobo.

A spokesman for the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said it was all a clerical mix-up and staff have been talked to about preventing repeat errors.

Leticia Jacobo reflected on the experience.

“I’m very thankful for having family members and people out here, because if I didn’t, who knows what happened, I would have just unknowingly went to ICE custody. And you know, so it would have been a scary moment.”

Many Native people and supporters are calling this a case of racial profiling, and Jacobo is weighing a lawsuit. For now though, she plans to celebrate the holiday season with her family.

Ericka Burns, left, and her daughter Leticia Jacobo, who is a member of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. (Courtesy Maria Nunez)

Maria Nunez says she’s happy that her niece is safe.

“And I’m just so proud to be Native American and have all the love and support and knowing that …we’re all ready to fight and protect what’s ours and what our rights are.”

Since the Trump administration ramped up its immigration crackdown, tribes have complained of ICE confronting their enrolled citizens.

Many have issued guidance on their rights and what documentation to present if detained.

Neither the Des Moines ICE office nor the Salt River Pima-Marcicopa Indian Community returned requests for comment.

A sunset view of the Colorado River from Cienega Springs in La Paz County, Ariz. (Photo: Gabriel Pietrorazio / KJZZ)

The Colorado River has long been considered a lifeline for the Southwest.

As KJZZ’s Gabriel Pietrorazio reports, one Arizona tribe is now acknowledging the waterway as having the same rights and legal protections as tribal members.

The Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) would not say whether it was unanimous, but the nine council members still voted to recognize personhood for the namesake river under tribal law.

It comes at a pivotal time when sustained drought threatens this natural resource – CRIT considers “a living entity” – running parallel to the tribe’s nearly 300,000-acre reservation along the California border.

This measure also tasks tribal councils to take the Colorado River’s needs under consideration amid an uncertain future on two fronts: climate change and ongoing inter-state water negotiations.