The president of the Rochester City Council is clarifying the sanctuary city policy following last week's controversial Border Patrol traffic stop that involved RPD officers.

President Miguel Melendez says the policy doesn't prevent Rochester police officers from responding for help in a real emergency. He says after reviewing the body camera footage of the traffic stop on Whitney Street, it didn't meet that threshold.

Body camera footage shows a number of RPD officers taking part in handcuffing people from the vehicle, which city officials said was a violation of the sanctuary city policy.

Melendez says the policy isn't designed to protect criminals, just to ensure everyone has due process in court regardless of immigration status.

The Department of Justice says three people were detained during the March 24 traffic stop. According to the DOJ, they had no immigration status in the United States. All three were taken into immigration custody. 

One of the individuals, 25-year-old Wilson Oswaldo Galvan-Lope — a Guatemalan citizen, was charged with illegal re-entry, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison.