Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents deployed tear gas on a Salem street Saturday, Oct. 10. The incident capped a week in which rights groups documented at least 30 immigration arrests across Oregon, including in Marion County.
The Salem Police Department said it received a dispatch call at about 9:30 a.m. reporting that roughly 30 people had surrounded ICE vehicles with their own cars near 1970 Lancaster Drive NE. ICE agents used tear gas to free their vehicles and left before Salem officers arrived, as first reported by KGW.
Multiple 911 calls followed. Callers reported difficulty breathing and eye irritation. Salem Police and Fire responded, provided medical aid and assigned detectives to gather witness statements.
Salem Police said in a statement that officers had no prior knowledge of the ICE activity and did not coordinate with the agency in any way. The department referred the incident to the Oregon Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for independent review.
A KGW reporter found used pepper balls and residue at the Lancaster Drive scene.
Salem City Councilor and mayor-elect Vanessa Nordyke wrote on social media that she supports a full DOJ review, saying the situation is "terrifying" for Salem families. Salem City Councilor Mai Vang, who represents northeast Salem's Ward 6, also condemned the incident on social media:
"Federal agents are bringing chaos into residential streets, endangering children, elders and everyone who lives there."
Statewide surge reaches Marion County
The Lancaster Drive confrontation followed a sharp escalation in immigration enforcement statewide. The Portland Immigrant Rights Coalition told The Oregonian/OregonLive that 21 people were arrested between Tuesday, Oct. 6, and Thursday, Oct. 8. By Friday, Oct. 9, immigrant rights groups had documented at least 30 arrests for the week, KGW reported.
The actual number could be higher.
The coalition said arrests increased across five counties: Multnomah, Washington, Linn, Clackamas and Marion. The Statesman Journal reported that Marion County was among the areas with the most concentrated activity. For comparison, the coalition confirmed 92 arrests statewide in all of August and 76 in September.
Jess Montoya, network director for Oregon for All, said arrests continued Thursday, Oct. 8, in Salem, King City, Happy Valley, Tangent and Medford.
Lawmakers visit ICE facility
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and Reps. Suzanne Bonamici and Maxine Dexter visited the ICE facility in South Portland on Friday, Oct. 9. The lawmakers asked about detainees' access to lawyers, their treatment in custody and whether the facility was complying with federal law.
Federal officials confirmed to the lawmakers that enforcement had increased, with roughly 18 ICE agents in the field making arrests, KGW reported.
"These intensified sweeps are just terrorizing our communities," Merkley said. "We are hearing an intensified operation in east Multnomah County, in Woodburn, in Hillsboro."
Bonamici raised concerns that detainees were being transferred to a facility in Tacoma, Washington, making it harder for families and attorneys to reach them. Dexter's office said the Portland Immigrant Rights Coalition reported attorneys were denied access to four clients across 12 separate occasions on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Marion County already a hotspot
Marion County was already seeing elevated federal enforcement activity before the October surge. The state's Criminal Justice Commission reported that the Marion County Sheriff's Office received 29 federal requests for immigration enforcement assistance between June 2025 and May 2026. That was the most of any local agency in Oregon, according to Salem Reporter. Oregon's sanctuary law prohibits local police from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement.
Statewide, federal agencies made 329 such requests during that period, up from 95 the prior year.
KGW reported that ICE had not responded to requests for comment on the number of Oregon arrests or whether additional operations are planned. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Thursday, Oct. 8: "Every day, DHS enforces the laws of the nation across the country."
The Oregon DOJ and DHS reviews of the Lancaster Drive tear gas incident are pending. Residents who witnessed the incident can contact Salem Police at 503-588-6123.
