Since 2019, an array of state laws has made Florida an increasingly hostile place for immigrants. Entities ranging from counties like Miami-Dade, cities like Tallahassee, and even universities are signing these agreements that effectively deputize law enforcement officials to serve as immigration agents. The city of Fort Myers initially rejected the immigration partnership with the federal government.
Still, Florida's Attorney General James Uthmeier threatened the council members with removal from office if they did not comply, and Governor Ron DeSantis warned local officials that the "days of inaction are over" and to "govern yourselves accordingly," bullying the city council into submission.
We are witnessing this dynamic unfold across Florida. Elected officials are "obeying in advance," as Timothy Snyder shrewdly puts it in his book On Tyranny, arguing that much of the power in authoritarian governments is freely given. DeSantis has not been shy about overstretching his authority to remove local and state-level elected officials for partisan political reasons.
The lack of political will and courage officials have displayed when defending their jurisdictional authority is unfortunate, especially when current law, which specifies that a "sheriff or the chief correctional officer operating a county detention facility must enter into a written agreement with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement to participate in the immigration program established under s. 287(g)," gives them the cover to stand up to DeSantis.
I recently spoke before the City of Tallahassee commission to delineate the legality of the city council's rejection of signing into a 287(g) agreement. Unfortunately, the commission, except commissioners Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter, cowered under the threat of possible state retaliation, but they shouldn't have.
A so-called sanctuary ban enacted in Florida through Senate Bill 1808 a few years ago relates to 287(g) agreements, as required by statute 908.11, which details a mandate for counties that operate a county-level detention facility to sign on. That means city commissioners, public university presidents, and any other entity that doesn't operate a county-level detention facility can reject 287(g) contracts, even outside of a police chief's decision.
Of course, they need the political will to do it, but they have the legal cover if they want to have that fight. This is not an opinion that I hold alone; the Tallahassee city attorney and Coral Gables police chief, among others, have acknowledged that there was no legal requirement for their cities to sign a 287(g) contract.
One municipality in Florida is showing courage in standing up to the state's government overreach. The city of South Miami is seeking a declaratory judgment over whether it is truly required to sign a 287(g) agreement, as an entity that does not operate a county jail. This will hopefully further clear up any confusion, as elected officials from other municipalities, like Doral, continue to mislead their residents by saying they must sign into these contracts.
At its current stage, the scale and scope of Florida's 287(g) program "pretty much dwarfs" the last ten years' worth of nationwide enforcement under these laws, according to Daniel Stageman, director of research at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. The dragnet of these enforcement practices inevitably expands beyond undocumented immigrants. Just last month, Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez, a U.S.-born citizen, was racially profiled and detained in Florida under an anti-immigrant law targeting those without authorization to be in Florida and placed under an ICE hold in Leon County.
The Florida Immigrant Coalition found out about the arrest and managed to secure Juan Carlos' release after connecting him with legal support and tipping off media and elected officials. Still, his arrest shows why the persecutory and ever-growing hostile framework of immigration enforcement in this country is a threat to every citizen, not just undocumented immigrants.
On June 12th, the City of Miami will decide whether to sign a 287(g) agreement after it deferred initial consideration. Miami is not legally obligated to sign the agreement — a legal, financial, and humanitarian liability for the city. Therefore, commissioners should reject it.
Editor's Note: Thomas Kennedy is a former member of the Democratic National Committee. He has worked with organizations such as the Florida Immigrant Coalition and Immigration Hub, as well as in the Florida Legislature. You can find him on X and Blue Sky at @tomaskenn
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