A unanimous reversal vote Friday by the Fort Myers City Council on the city police department's participation in the ICE 287 (g) program raises questions about the impact of public testimony and leaves many wondering what comes next for the City of Fort Myers?
Despite overwhelming opposition expressed during public comment preceding the vote, the council agreed to approve Fort Myers Police Department participation.
As the meeting opened, a line of residents and other interested parties waited in anticipation to enter council chambers for a special meeting concerning proposal 287 (g).
The anticipation was wrought by Monday's city council vote on 287 (g) that failed to approve it via a 3-3 deadlock.
According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE): "The 287(g) program allows ICE — through the delegation of specified immigration officer duties — to enhance collaboration with state and local law enforcement partners to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of aliens who undermine the safety of our nation’s communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws."
All seven Fort Myers council members showed up at the special meeting ready to listen to more than 40 residents voicing concerns. The vast majority of them were opposed to the agenda item.
Here’s attendee Stephanie House: “You have to think about the whole city of Fort Myers, and all the things that come with it. It's not going to be just today; it's going to be the future of Fort Myers and the future of the police department.”
Another speaker, Renata Bozetta, said she was a member of the Florida Immigrant Coalition: "The reason why I'm here is because 280 7g is not about safety. It's about terrifying an entire community. It's about diverting our local resources into creating criminalization and fear amongst our neighbors. Let's be very, very, very clear who is going to be impacted by this."
After all the comments, City Attorney Grant Alley took to the podium to clarify questions when several council members claimed they weren’t properly informed about the full implications of what they were considering.
Alley said "with respect to are we in violation of the law, it's very not clear."
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Councilwoman Terolyn Watson, who previously voted against 287(g) , explained her vote:
“The reason I voted the way I voted; it was lack of information, lack of information from my city attorney, lack of information from what role the police department's [going to] play in this.”
Other councilmembers expressed similar views saying they felt that they voted without having full information.
The ICE memorandum approved by councilmembers would let FMPD officers act as agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Under that label they could make warrantless arrests, detain people, seize property, and follow ICE rules on using force during arrests.
After Monday's split vote, Congressman Byron Donalds, Governor Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier all commented on the council's decision.
Donalds called the council's action a "dereliction of duty" while the governor warned the councilmembers they could be removed from office by him if they did not pass the approval.
The state attorney general also issued a letter to Fort Myers, which Alley addressed:
“In that attorney general opinion letter, he reasons that by failing to adopt the agreement, we created an implicit sanctuary policy and sanctuary policies are prohibited in the statute."
Alley added that Uthmeier's letter and opinion "should be given great weight."
Although there is no official definition of what constitutes a “sanctuary city”, according to the organization Global Refuge, it’s a policy that limits the extent to which a local/state government will share information with federal immigration law officers. While there are no federal penalties for municipalities adopting sanctuary policies, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill in 2019 that prohibits local governments from enacting such policies, requiring them to use "best efforts" to support the enforcement of federal immigration law.
Councilman Burson asked Alley directly if he believes the council should “do what’s been asked of them.”
Here’s Alley’s response: “Law enforcement has brought this forward as a tool; I think that you should support the agreement and the cooperation.”
As the meeting adjourned, stunned opponents filed out while supporters like Henry Jackson expressed relief.
“It was a lot of tension, and a lot of biased people. They're biased against the law of the land. We have laws in this country, [and] in this state to abide by.”
Margret Vincent came with a few friends and left with a few disappointments.
“The people overwhelmingly spoke, for them to vote 'no' on this. I mean, it was overwhelming. Stand up, have a spine, listen to the people. Do the right thing. This is enough. You know, you got to stop somewhere.”
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