DETROIT (Michigan News Source) – Detroit City Council Member Gabriela Santiago-Romero asked the police department for detailed reports for any interactions with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Santiago-Romero said continued reports to her office that the Detroit Police Department has supported ICE triggered her request.
The memo.
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On Jan. 8, Santiago-Romero sent a memo with the subject line: “DPD Interaction with ICE.” She asked for documentation of any city resources (staff, equipment, facilities, technology, or funds) used to support ICE activities. In addition, Santiago-Romero wanted a list of every instance in which ICE was allowed to use police lots or other city-owned lots to park, stage or store marked or unmarked vehicles. She wanted to know how many warrants have been shared with the city police and ICE.
Detroit has been the site of anti-ICE demonstrations after Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis earlier this month.
A statement from the city.
The city provided Michigan News Source with its policy for interacting with ICE, titled “Summary of Detroit Police Department Policy on Immigration Enforcement:”
A “Welcoming City” welcomes immigrants who have come to America legally and develops programs and policies encouraging their success. Detroit is a Welcoming City.
The term “Sanctuary City” has been used in many different ways over the years, but today refers to a city that provides sanctuary to immigrants who have come to America illegally. In Sanctuary Cities, the local police department refuses to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), or other federal agencies in enforcing federal immigration law. Detroit is not a Sanctuary City.
The Detroit Police Department (DPD) has clear policies relative to federal immigration law and its working relationship with ICE:
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By law, the job of DPD is to enforce city and state laws. Enforcing federal law, including immigration law, is not the job of a municipal police agency. When interacting with the public, Detroit police officers do not inquire about an individual’s immigration status. DPD’s long-standing and well-publicized policy that crime victims and witnesses will not be asked about their immigration status in police interviews has been a major factor in building cooperation for crime reduction in Detroit.
Whenever DPD makes a criminal arrest, DPD does not shelter any suspect from federal immigration enforcement. A DPD officer promptly enters the suspect’s information into the State of Michigan Livescan system, including the suspect’s name, set of fingerprints, and place of birth. That information is immediately available to federal law enforcement, including ICE. ICE regularly uses the Livescan system to identify suspected illegal immigrants in the custody of DPD and other local Michigan police agencies.
When federal immigration officials provide DPD with a properly executed detainer, DPD honors the detainer and allows federal agents to take custody of the individual within the time limits of the constitutional requirements.
Federal immigration enforcement strategies have varied widely over the last three Presidential administrations. DPD policy has remained constant throughout. DPD does not engage in immigration enforcement but, as described above, regularly cooperates with federal officials in their law enforcement efforts.
