Advocates for immigration reform in Tampa and around the country haven't had a whole lot to cheer about of late, but they'll take any little victories they can, which is why the group Raíces en Tampa held a press conference in front of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office in Ybor City on a blisteringly hot morning on Friday.

That "victory" was the quietly announced decision by the HCSO that they will only detain immigrants if there is a judge's order. Spokesman Larry McKinnon said the Sheriff's Office began reviewing the policy after a federal judge in Oregon ruled in April that an immigrant woman's rights were violated when she was held in jail at ICE's request.

But it's not like every other county in Florida is following suit. To date, only sheriff offices in Pinellas, Pasco and Hernando County have changed their policy in the wake of the Oregon decision.

"We were ready to have our demand heard loud and proud," Raices head Marisol Marquez said today about a previously planned protest in front of the department. "When the Sheriff's Office announced that it would no longer be holding immigrants for ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), we celebrated this victory."

Raices in Tampa member Oscar Hernandez said that recently a fellow activist's father driving to the grocery store was pulled over by police and charged with driving without a license, which is a misdemeanor. Hernandez said that he was detained for 48 hours, giving ICE sufficient time to come in and deport him. "It seems unfair to detain innocent people, and it's only targeting the undocumented community.

Norberto Garza said that he and other undocumented people he knows can and do drive even though they don't have legal drivers licenses, and he says they're not about to stop. "Even with fear we will not stop going to work, the supermarket or church," he said, adding that not having legal identification means he can't apply for a checking account at a bank of even purchase an airline ticket to visit family members.

That's why Raices en Tampa has been advocating for the past year to have the Florida Legislature join the 11 other states in the union that have past legislation allowing undocumented immigrants to receive driver’s licenses.

"Our obligation is to follow the laws," HCSO spokesman McKinnon said in response for that call, which would have to come from Tallahassee. "So whether that comes about or not in the future remains to be seen," he said, adding that the Sheriff's Office has several outreach programs with the Latino community, such as offering temporary visas for the undocumented when they are the victims of crimes so that they are not automatically deported once their undocumented status is revealed.

He also said that it has never been a priority for the Sheriff's Office to actively try to arrest suspected undocumented immigrants who could well be driving without a license. "If that was the case, anybody that works or lives out in the Dover area, the Wimauma area, and they go out there during the migrant season, and there's hundreds of people out there in the fields, chances are most of them don't have driver's licenses. We could sit there and arrest them all day long, but that's not what we're for. If they're involved with a crash, if they're involved with a crime, we're going to treat them just like every citizen, and they're going to be held accountable, and they're going to get charged. And when that charge happens,  now because of this new immigration hold, they're going to have to have a federal warrant, or a federal deportation order for them to get out. But just to randomly target any individual? We don't do that." 

Advocates for comprehensive immigration reform were dealt a blow last weekend when President Obama announced that he would hold off taking any executive actions regarding the issue until after the midterm elections in November. His decision was predicated on not causing a backlash that could hurt incumbent Democratic Senators fighting for their lives in states like North Carolina, Louisiana and Arkansas. Several leading Latino activists said the inaction has infuriated their membership and could persuade them to sit home during this November's elections.

Marquez acknowledged that she's heard such talk and understands it, but says she herself will be voting nonetheless this fall.  She says she and her colleagues will be getting their message out in a week of protests that will begin in another 10 days. 

This article appears in Sep 11-17, 2014.