San Diego Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera demanded Thursday, Oct. 29, that Police Chief Scott Wahl publicly disclose reports detailing when officers respond to federal immigration enforcement calls.

Elo-Rivera alleged that since the city's Due Process and Safety Ordinance (DPSO) took effect, SDPD has notified his office about only four responses, according to FOX 5 San Diego. City law requires the chief to report to the council within three business days after SDPD responds to a call for service involving federal law enforcement, Elo-Rivera said.

The councilmember said he has been asking Wahl for 15 months to notify the public when officers respond to these incidents. Elo-Rivera's office said the chief told him it was too "controversial" to begin alerting the public.

"It kept him quiet on this. That wasn't caution. It was a political choice," Elo-Rivera said in a news release, as reported by FOX 5.

SDPD says it followed the law

An SDPD spokesperson told FOX 5 the department has followed the DPSO and has procedures in place to ensure compliance. The spokesperson said that when officers respond to federal agents investigating an alleged crime involving a protected personal characteristic, such as immigration status, they notify all councilmembers and the mayor's office.

The spokesperson acknowledged that community concerns about immigration enforcement extend beyond what the ordinance covers. In some cases, officers are called to keep the peace when tensions arise between federal agents and community members, even when federal officials are not investigating an alleged crime involving a protected characteristic, the spokesperson said. SDPD said those incidents fall outside the DPSO but the department still notifies affected city offices.

Chief Wahl did not personally respond in the FOX 5 report. The SDPD spokesperson's statement did not address Elo-Rivera's specific allegation that only four reports had been shared.

Petition launched

Elo-Rivera's office is sponsoring a petition demanding that Wahl share the reports with the public when officers are called to federal immigration incidents.

"San Diegans deserve to know why their police department was there and what it did," Elo-Rivera said in the news release.

The San Diego City Council unanimously passed the DPSO on April 7, 2026. Authored by Elo-Rivera, the ordinance requires judicial warrants before federal agents can access non-public city property, prohibits local participation in discriminatory or unauthorized enforcement actions and establishes reporting requirements when SDPD responds to calls involving federal immigration agencies.

District 1 Councilmember Joe LaCava, who represents La Jolla, voted for the ordinance. At the time of its passage, LaCava called it a measure that "protects our residents, our police officers, our employees, and the city from potential involvement in illegal activity," according to FOX 5's October 2025 report on the measure.

SDPD maintains it has complied with the ordinance.