Maryland sheriffs have said they will keep working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement despite an expected new law that would ban official agreements between law enforcement and the federal agency.
Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, is expected to sign the law banning 287(g) agreements after it was passed Thursday by the Maryland General Assembly.
"No politician or legislative body is going to tell me that I can't communicate with another law enforcement agency on matters of public safety in my community," Carroll County Sheriff James DeWees told The Baltimore Sun. "I'm not going to stop."
Sheriffs in the Maryland jurisdictions with 287(g) agreements told the Sun they would comply with the bill, but they would continue to communicate and work with ICE and are considering legal challenges to the law.
"This is all political," Frederick County Sheriff Chuck Jenkins said.
"You can put any lipstick you want on it; it's all political," Jenkins added. "The Democrats don't want any cooperation with ICE. They don't want any enforcement whatsoever."
The counties are Allegany, Carroll, Cecil, Frederick, Garrett, St. Mary's, Washington, and Wicomico.
Cecil, Frederick, and Harford counties authorize corrections officers to screen detainees for immigration status and contact ICE if they are in the U.S. illegally.
The other counties with 287(g) agreements cooperate with ICE only when there is an active Department of Homeland Security warrant.
Jenkins warned that the new law will increase crime in Maryland.
"There will be protections here for them, so I think you're going to see an influx of criminals, people with criminal intent, maybe criminal gangs, transnational criminal gangs," Jenkins told the Sun.
DeWees warned that Carroll County will be overrun with "public safety chaos" once the agreement is signed.
"Like we're seeing in Minneapolis," DeWees said. "ICE is going to be up here searching for them in the community."
Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler told the Sun that making an enemy out of law enforcement is "insane," noting a lack of communication between law enforcement partners preceded the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
"And yet, we didn't learn from it. We're doubling down," Gahler said. "It is completely insane that we would not coordinate for public safety purposes."
Jenkins and Gahler told the Sun their counties would provide arrest sheets to ICE daily and would continue immigration detainers.
DeWees said he would continue to notify ICE when someone who is in his county without legal permission to be in the U.S. is released from jail.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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