Some Maryland sheriff's deputies oppose house bill that would end local partnerships with ICE
Most notably, the
Maryland Values Act
would prohibit new 287(g) agreements between local agencies and federal immigration authorities.
Fredrick County Sheriff's Deputy Chuck Jenkins called the bill a "terrible and dangerous piece of legislation." Jenkins said it will encourage criminals who have illegally entered the United States to establish themselves in Maryland.
Jenkins said Frederick County has the oldest 287g program in the history of the United States.
"Since 2008, we've removed 1,795 criminals - many of them dangerous felons. We've removed them because of our partnership with ICE and the 287g program," Jenkins said.
Opponents of the Maryland value act say the measure would release dangerous criminals back into the community, since it would require existing 287(g) agreements to be terminated by July 1, 2025.
"I don't think there's anyone who would argue that making sure criminals do not get released back into the community is not a public safety issue," Matt Ellison, Maryland's ICE deputy assistant director, said.
Ellison added said "sanctuary" communities, or jurisdictions that limit local law enforcement cooperation with federal law enforcement in immigration cases, are dangerous.
Officials in sanctuary jurisdictions such as San Francisco have defended the protections for immigrants, saying that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes.
Some supporters of sanctuary laws have also said that threatening undocumented immigrants with deportation erodes the trust between the community and law enforcement.
Deputy Jenkins said it's an argument he said he disagrees with and hears "all the time".
"The distrust of law enforcement comes with the people from the countries they're coming from. They can't trust law enforcement in the countries where they were born and raised. The real fear is not law enforcement, the real fear in these communities are the criminals that are in these communities."
The 287(g) program, named after Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, authorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to deputize selected state and local law enforcement officers to enforce federal immigration law.
According to the ICE website
, the 287(g) program operates in three models. The Jail Enforcement Model (JEM) allows local officers to identify and process removable aliens with criminal charges, while the Warrant Service Officer (WSO) program permits officers to serve administrative warrants on aliens in their jails. The Task Force Model (TFM) serves as a "force multiplier for law enforcement agencies to enforce limited immigration authority with ICE oversight during their routine police duties," the ICE website reads.
Since entering office, President Trump has prioritized a crackdown on illegal immigration.
On January 20, Mr. Trump issued an executive order, "Protecting the American People Against Invasion" requiring ICE "to authorize State and local law enforcement officials, as the Secretary of Homeland Security determines are qualified and appropriate, under section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to the maximum extent permitted by law."
In a memo issued a day later, Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove directed prosecutors and law enforcement to consider charging state and local officials who attempt to impede Mr. Trump's immigration efforts.
Maryland, along with 11 other states,
joined a lawsuit
challenging Mr. Trump's order, alleging that the U.S. Constitution prevents the federal government from commandeering states to enforce federal laws.
Mr. Trump's immigration crackdown has had a significant impact on Marylanders. Members of immigrant communities
expressed fear
of mass deportations after the president revoked a policy that prohibited immigration arrests near schools, places of worship, and other sensitive locations.
Maryland lawmakers and immigration advocates have shown support for
several proposed bills
to protect immigrants, including the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act and the Maryland Data Privacy Act, which aim to limit ICE's access to certain locations and information.
Immigration advocacy groups like CASA have been
pushing for legislation
to protect immigrant communities and protesting against what they claim are inhumane conditions in ICE detention facilities.
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CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
A big question about Alligator Alcatraz keeps coming up: Who's in charge?
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There is 'confusion of who exactly is running the show at Alligator Alcatraz,' US District Judge Rodolfo A. Ruiz II said in a July hearing. 'Who is doing what in this facility?' In response to his questions, officials filed paperwork showing agreements between multiple Florida agencies and ICE. Ruiz dismissed part of that lawsuit late Monday and also moved the case to a different jurisdiction, making it likely legal battles over the facility will continue. In the environmental case, US District Judge Kathleen Williams is expected to issue an order this week. And she's already temporarily blocked additional construction at the site. If she sides with the plaintiffs and issues a preliminary injunction this week, Alligator Alcatraz's days could be numbered. Among the options Williams is considering: a full operational shutdown of the facility. When complaints come up about conditions at an immigrant detention facility, or when issues arise in individual detainees' cases, it's important for lawmakers, members of the public and detainees' family members and legal representatives to know who to contact. Typically, Immigration and Customs Enforcement's website will list basic information about its detention facilities, including a detainee locator and details about family and attorney visitations, according to Claire Trickler-McNulty, a former ICE and DHS official who helped craft detention policies in previous administrations. She notes that Alligator Alcatraz isn't listed there. 'Because it's not really, officially an ICE facility, a lot of the infrastructure that's been built is not applicable. So it's sort of like floating in the dark,' she says. 'It's very concerning. … It's confusing and also frustrating, because it's so murky.' Family members of detainees told CNN they've struggled to find out if their loved ones are even being held at Alligator Alcatraz. And critics have raised numerous concerns about the facility since it opened, with reports of hundreds of migrants confined in cages amid sweltering heat, bug infestations and meager meals. The state of Florida has pushed back, saying conditions at the camp are in 'good working order' and that claims to the contrary are false. The Department of Homeland Security has decried what it calls 'hoaxes' about the facility. 'The media is desperate for allegations of inhumane conditions at this facility to be true, so they can slow down President Trump's partnerships with States to turbocharge efforts to remove the worst of the worst,' DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a recent statement. But immigrant rights groups argue the confusion over who's in charge at the facility has very real consequences. 'It raises a lot of red flags, because we want to make sure that everybody's held accountable,' says Nery Lopez, a senior organizer at the Detention Watch Network. 'We don't know who to hold accountable. There's no number (to call) … to have someone go in there and verify' when allegations are made about conditions inside. Kennedy describes the facility as a 'black site.' 'The detainees and their family members feel like they're just in complete legal limbo while they're inside,' he says. McLaughlin disputed that characterization. 'More Alligator Alcatraz hoaxes. It is not a 'black site,'' she told CNN in a written statement. 'The facility is managed by the State of Florida through the Division of Emergency Management. Detainees have access to phones they can use to contact their family and lawyers. Additionally, Alligator Alcatraz meets federal detention standards.' Debates and legal battles over Alligator Alcatraz could have implications far beyond the Florida immigrant detention facility. 'It's seen as a testing ground,' Trickler-McNulty says. That's because officials have repeatedly pointed to the facility as a model they hope other states will follow. 'Florida was unique in what they presented to us, and I would ask every other governor to do the exact same thing,' DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said after visiting the facility in July. 'This is a model, but we need other states to step up,' Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis added. Less than two weeks later, Noem told reporters she was in talks with multiple states who want to build similar facilities. 'I'm having ongoing conversations with five other governors,' Noem said. Just over a month after Alligator Alcatraz began operating, Noem announced a similar facility would open in Indiana. Officials said the facility, dubbed the 'Speedway Slammer' for the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway to the south, would provide 1,000 immigrant detention beds. And on Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security announced plans for a 280-bed expansion of ICE detention space at the Work Ethic Camp in McCook, Nebraska, describing the move as its third state partnership. Last week, DeSantis also announced Florida would open another facility at a former prison in the northern part of the state, 'building on the success the state has had with Alligator Alcatraz.' The rapid expansion of detention facilities makes confusion over who's in charge at Alligator Alcatraz all the more concerning, Lopez says. 'Then it flags the alarm of, is this what's going to happen in other areas, too? There's going to be more questions in the air, and it's just truly very dangerous,' she says. Even if legal challenges to Alligator Alcatraz are successful and a judge blocks the facility from operating, Kennedy says, it's clear authorities intend to use this approach elsewhere. 'It's a scary model,' he says. CNN's Devon M. Sayers, Allison Gordon and Isabel Rosales contributed to this report.
