Increased “communication” between federal, state, and county law enforcement is the biggest change border czar Tom Homan has effectively created in Minnesota, according to the head of the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association.
“Mr. Homan made, I think, a significant step in good faith showing that, based on the sheriffs’ commitment for improved communication, they’re going to begin the drawdown,” James Stuart, executive director and CEO of the association, told The Daily Signal of the federal immigration enforcement presence in the state.
Homan announced Wednesday that 700 federal immigration agents will be leaving Minnesota immediately due to “unprecedented cooperation” between federal, state, and local law enforcement.
While there has been “nothing signed saying this is what’s going to be happening” between federal immigration agents and county sheriffs, there is “an agreement that we are trying to improve communication,” Stuart said.
“Cooperation is a tricky word, but the first step is communication, and we have a really strong commitment from sheriffs across the state for that,” Stuart added.
The Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association was founded in 1885 and represents the state’s 87 sheriffs.
The Trump administration deployed about 3,000 federal immigration agents to Minnesota in January, aimed at arresting criminal illegal aliens. Homan has said repeatedly that a reduction in force is dependent on state and local law enforcement adhering to Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers.
Minnesota is a sanctuary state, meaning state law limits the ability that state and local law enforcement can cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. This includes detainers, which allow for the transfer of an illegal alien from state or local custody to federal custody within the confines of a prison or jail.
“We have a long-standing history of honoring ICE detainers to the extent allowed by [Minnesota] law,” Carver County Sheriff Jason Kamerud told The Daily Signal. Carver County has a population of over 100,000 and is located southwest of Minneapolis.
Minnesota law allows local law enforcement to notify ICE prior to an individual’s scheduled release, but it prohibits jails or prisons in the state from holding an illegal alien past their release date for apprehension by federal agents.
The agency is not asking state and local authorities to hold criminal illegal aliens “past their normal release time for immigration purposes,” Homan said during a press conference Wednesday.
Changes to Minnesota’s laws pertaining to ICE detailers are “a discussion point,” Stuart said, adding it is something that “ought to be considered.”
“Minnesota law enforcement has been caught wedged in the middle of so many of these political battles over the years, when, in fact, law enforcement should never be political, and it should always just be about public safety,” the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association CEO said.
Minnesota’s state prison system has been cooperating with federal immigration agents, notifying ICE when illegal aliens are going to be released so federal agents can detain them first, Homan explained Wednesday. He added that the sheriffs he has spoken with are also willing to cooperate, which Stuart confirmed.
“The vast majority of sheriffs either are communicating [immigration] information within the law or are willing to,” Stuart said.
The border czar arrived in Minneapolis about 10 days ago to take over the immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities at President Donald Trump’s request, after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed Alex Pretti, 37, on Jan. 24, and an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Good, also 37, on Jan. 7.
“I’m actually amazed at the cooperation and agreements we already talked about and the willingness to work with us,” Homan said of state and local law enforcement. “We’re doing better than I ever thought we would.”
About 2,000 federal immigration officers will remain in Minneapolis for now as the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operation continues in the state.