OCOEE, Fla. – As the city of Fort Myers faces pushback for a recent council vote on an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two cities in Central Florida will decide this week if they will enter into their own ICE agreements under the 287(g) program.
Tuesday night, commissioners in the city of Ocoee gave their approval of an agreement that will allow selected law enforcement personnel to be trained by immigration officers.
There was not an in-depth discussion about the memo included in the city commission’s agenda packet. The item was approved along with other matters in the consent agenda.
Our News 6 Team reached out to the city again Wednesday to see if anyone from the police department or administrative staff would be available to explain the next steps. We were told that no one was available to speak on camera.
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Documents obtained by News 6 describe how the 287(g) task force model will work and what authority select officers will have. It states personnel must complete mandatory training both in-person and online before they are authorized to perform the functions of an immigration officer.
There are several designated authorized functions, including:
- The power and authority to interrogate any alien or person believed to be an alien as to his right to be or remain in the United States (INA § 287(a)(1) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(a)(l)) and to process for immigration violations those individuals who have been arrested for State or Federal criminal offenses.
- The power and authority to arrest without a warrant any alien entering or attempting to unlawfully enter the United States in the officer’s presence or view, or any alien in the United States, if the officer has reason to believe the alien to be arrested is in the United States in violation of law and is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained. INA § 287(a)(2) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(c)(1). Subsequent to such arrest, the arresting officer must take the alien without unnecessary delay for examination before an immigration officer having authority to examine aliens as to their right to enter or remain in the United States.
- The power to arrest without warrant for felonies which have been committed and which are cognizable under any law of the United States regulating the admission, exclusion, expulsion, or removal of aliens, if the officer has reason to believe the alien to be arrested is in the United States in violation of law and is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained. INA § 287(a)(4) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(c)(2).
- The power to serve and execute warrants of arrest for immigration violations under INA § 287(a) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(e)(3).
- The power and authority to administer oaths and to take and consider evidence (INA § 287(b) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(a)(2)) to complete required alien processing to include fingerprinting, photographing, and interviewing, as well as the preparation of affidavits and the taking of sworn statements for ICE supervisory review.
- The power and authority to prepare charging documents (INA § 239, 8 C.F.R. § 239.1; INA § 238, 8 C.F.R § 238.1; INA § 241(a)(5), 8 C.F.R § 241.8; INA § 235(b)(l), 8 C.F.R. § 235.3) including the preparation of the Notice to Appear (NTA) or other charging document, as appropriate, for the signature of an ICE officer for aliens in categories established by ICE supervisors.
- The power and authority to issue immigration detainers (8 C.F.R. § 287.7) and I-213, Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien, for aliens in categories established by ICE supervisors.
- The power and authority to take and maintain custody of aliens arrested by ICE, or another State or local law enforcement agency on behalf of ICE (8 C.F.R. § 287.5(c)(6)).
- The power and authority to take and maintain custody of aliens arrested pursuant to the immigration laws and transport (8 C.F.R. § 287.5(c)(6)) such aliens to ICE-approved detention facilities.
An agenda for a Satellite Beach council meeting Wednesday night shows they will also be presented with a similar 287(g) task force model to approve. A summary of the agenda item states once officers undergo training they will “gain authority to enforce immigration laws, such as questioning individuals about their immigration status and detaining those suspected of being unlawfully present in the county.”
Last month, Gov. Ron DeSantis stated that all 67 county sheriffs would have the authority to act as federal immigration agents under the 287(g) program. He spoke alongside the Department of Homeland Security Senior Counselor Keith Pearson at Homestead Air Reserve Base, where he announced the statewide expansion of immigration enforcement.
“We’re the only state in the country where all of the counties have done this,” DeSantis said. “This is not just saying, ‘Oh, if there’s an illegal alien in our jail, then we’ll let ICE pick them up. Obviously, you got to that. It’s also not saying that, ‘Oh, we’ll honor a detainer or a warrant.’ Of course you have to do that. This is a task force model which will lead to street-level enforcement operations.”
While supporters have praised the ICE training agreements and Florida’s efforts to align with the Trump administration’s immigration policies, others argue the program will be used to target people based on race.
Adriana Rivera, the communications director for the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said previous 287(g) agreements have a track record of not working.
“In 2012, it led to widespread racial profiling, and they had to basically shut it down because they were infringing on the rights of people, including many U.S. citizens who were racially profiled,” Rivera said. “We’re seeing people who have no police backgrounds, people who even have a legal status in the country, being swept up by this hysteria that we’re living under.”
Rivera said she is also concerned about the resources and burden placed on local taxpayers, so local officers can carry out the tasks of federal immigration officers.
“Everybody that pays taxes in their local cities and counties are the ones who are paying the vast majority of the costs associated with joining and carrying out the duties of the ICE task force,” Rivera said. “So, this would mean that we’re paying the salaries, the benefits, the overtime, the supplies for police to handle immigration enforcement, including when these officers are sued for violating the resident’s constitutional rights.”
Rivera said city and county officials should consider the values of the jurisdiction they represent before giving their approval.
“These officials were elected by us, right? We wanted them there. It should not be right for big government, for somebody to come and say, ‘Well, you’re not doing what I want you to do. You’re out of here.’ Like, that is where we’re dipping our toes into, very dangerous territory,” Rivera said. “It’s important that people know that these cities and counties are not required to join the ICE task force under Florida law, and neither is any police department. So, this is just bullying. This is bullying at its worst.”