DAVIS, Calif. — The Davis Police Department issued just two citations for improper use of a vehicle horn during the first 10 months of 2026 and through Nov. 10, according to newly obtained public records, with one of those citations involving a woman attempting to alert residents to federal immigration enforcement activity last week.
The figures, disclosed in a Nov. 10 response to a California Public Records Act request submitted by the Davis Vanguard, raise new questions about the circumstances surrounding the Nov. 5 traffic stop, which prompted a public apology from Davis Mayor Donna Neville and Vice Mayor Gloria Partida and an administrative investigation into whether police violated city policies.
The Vanguard submitted its records request Nov. 6, asking how many citations Davis police had issued in 2026 for violations of California Vehicle Code Section 27001(b), which restricts the use of vehicle horns.
In its written response, the department stated: “The Department has issued 2 citations this year for 27001(b) CVC.”
The response did not identify the recipients of the citations or provide their dates. However, the department previously confirmed issuing a citation for improper horn use to Jill Judd on Nov. 5, while she was following vehicles she identified as belonging to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The newly disclosed figures suggest that citations for improper horn use are exceptionally uncommon in Davis, although the department did not provide comparable statistics for previous years or information about warnings issued without citations.
The revelation adds another dimension to the controversy surrounding Judd’s traffic stop, which occurred while federal immigration agents were operating in Davis and community volunteers were attempting to monitor their activities.
Judd, a community member associated with NorCal Resist, said she was following an unmarked vehicle and using her horn, whistle and voice to warn residents about the presence of immigration agents.
According to Judd, federal agents contacted Davis police after becoming aware that they were being followed. She alleged that two police vehicles subsequently approached the federal agents and that officers spoke with the occupants before the vehicle continued driving.
Judd said she resumed following the vehicle before being stopped by a Davis police officer near Cowell Boulevard and Lillard Drive.
“I complied. He didn’t reprimand me. He held me and wrote a ticket for horn honking,” Judd wrote in a public account of the incident.
Judd alleged that the purpose of the stop was to prevent her from continuing to follow the federal agents, allowing them to leave the area without being monitored.
“There is NO doubt that Officer Squibbs was interested in interfering with the following of the ICE vehicle,” she wrote.
Judd’s allegations about communications between federal agents and Davis police have not been independently verified, and the department has denied assisting federal immigration enforcement.
The department’s initial statement described the officer as conducting routine traffic enforcement when he observed a driver excessively sounding her horn.
“The officer conducted a traffic stop and issued a citation for unlawful use of a vehicle horn,” the department stated.
Police said the encounter occurred at approximately 10:08 a.m., more than an hour after Department of Homeland Security personnel notified the department that federal agents would be operating in Davis using unmarked vehicles.
According to the department, federal officials did not request assistance or provide information about the purpose or location of their operation.
At approximately 10:40 a.m., DHS notified Davis police that federal personnel had departed the city.
The department subsequently announced that the traffic stop was under administrative review to determine whether any city policies or regulations had been violated.
The controversy prompted an unusually direct response from Davis elected officials.
In a joint statement issued Nov. 6, Mayor Donna Neville and Vice Mayor Gloria Partida apologized for the encounter and acknowledged the damage it had caused to community confidence in the city’s commitment to protecting immigrant residents.
“We speak out today to apologize for the incident that occurred yesterday in Davis while NorCal Resist was attempting to warn community members of the presence of ICE in our community,” the officials wrote.
“We value nothing more than the trust our community places in us,” they continued. “This incident, especially in light of the federal government’s current assault on immigrant rights, has only served to shake our community’s trust.”
Neville and Partida emphasized that the city has an obligation not to assist federal immigration enforcement and that residents have constitutional rights to monitor and protest government activities.
“We also write today to reassure our community that we take our obligation not to assist ICE very seriously,” they wrote. “Equally important, we recognize and support our community’s rights under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution to peacefully protest.”
City Manager Daryel Dunston separately emphasized that Davis does not support federal immigration enforcement operations.
“Let me be clear, the City of Davis does not support ICE activities, and the City Council and myself have been unequivocal in that direction to staff,” Dunston said.
Dunston also cautioned against reaching conclusions before the investigation is completed.
“I know these reports are troubling, but let’s not rush to judgment and assume negative intent,” he said. “Let’s allow space for the administrative review process to run its course. If it is found that internal policies were violated, it will be addressed accordingly.”
The new citation figures do not establish whether the officer acted improperly. Police officers have discretion in deciding whether to issue traffic citations, and the fact that a particular violation is rarely cited does not necessarily establish selective enforcement.
However, the rarity of horn-related citations makes the circumstances of the Nov. 5 stop particularly relevant to the ongoing investigation.
The central question is not simply whether Judd violated the vehicle code, but whether police exercised their enforcement authority independently or in a manner that effectively assisted federal immigration agents.
Davis maintains a sanctuary city ordinance restricting the use of municipal personnel and resources to facilitate federal civil immigration enforcement.
The city’s ordinance includes restrictions on providing traffic or crowd-control assistance to federal immigration authorities, subject to exceptions involving the protection of life and property.
California’s Values Act, commonly known as SB 54, also limits the use of state and local law enforcement resources for federal civil immigration enforcement.
As the Vanguard previously reported, the legal questions surrounding the stop extend beyond whether the officer had grounds to issue a citation.
An otherwise lawful traffic stop could raise separate concerns if it were undertaken to facilitate immigration enforcement in violation of applicable state law or city policy.
The Davis incident also follows a controversy in Sacramento, where police detained individuals monitoring immigration enforcement activity.
Following that encounter, Sacramento City Manager Maraskeshia Smith issued a directive prohibiting officers from acting as security for immigration agents or intervening solely because federal agents were being followed, photographed or recorded.
The Sacramento directive specifically addressed situations in which federal agents contact local police because members of the public are monitoring their activities.
In Davis, the police department has maintained that it did not assist ICE.
“Our department remains committed to complying with the City of Davis Sanctuary City Ordinance and the California Values Act (SB 54),” the department stated. “We have not assisted or participated in federal civil immigration enforcement activities, and we remain committed to upholding these legal obligations.”
The department has not publicly disclosed the results of its administrative investigation or announced when the review will be completed.
The Nov. 10 public records response also did not identify the other horn-related citation issued during 2026, leaving unanswered whether the two incidents involved comparable circumstances.
The Vanguard’s records request was submitted one day after Judd’s citation, and the department responded four days later, confirming that only two citations had been issued during the year for the specified violation.
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