Deluzio urges local police to reject 287(g) cooperation with ICE

Democratic U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio urged Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies to avoid or rescind agreements to work with federal immigration agents as he presented findings of a study of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in his western Pennsylvania district.

The study found nearly two-thirds of all ICE detentions in the 17th Congressional District occurred in Beaver County, where the sheriff’s department and eight municipal police departments have 287(g) agreements with ICE. 

The portion of Deluzio’s district in Allegheny County saw fewer ICE detentions despite having a larger population and a greater number of foreign-born residents. It also has only one police force, in Springdale, that works with ICE while two others, Coraopolis and Stowe Township, canceled their agreements, the report found. 

“One of the many things that the American people are angry about and pushing back about is Donald Trump’s mass deportation regime and ICE agents abusing American liberties at the president’s direction,” Deluzio said, noting voters spoke clearly against the “chaos and corruption” of the Trump administration in last week’s election.

The review of 209 arrests between Jan. 1 and Aug. 6 also shows most people detained have no convictions or pending charges for violent offenses or otherwise. And it revealed that ICE is hiding data from the public, including why people were detained under 287(g) in places where local police have no such agreement.

“All of us in western Pennsylvania and across the country have the right to clear and complete information about what is happening in our neighborhoods and the departments or agencies funded with public money that are responsible for carrying them out,” Deluzio said.

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Named for the section of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, 287(g) agreements have police assist ICE in identifying, arresting and removing immigrants. There are 146 local police agencies that have agreements with ICE and the number has nearly doubled in the last six months, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported last week. 

The Pennsylvania State Police does not have an agreement with ICE.

Jaime Martinez, founder and executive director of the immigration rights group Frontline Dignity, noted that behind the numbers the report reveals are Pittsburgh-area residents who have been directly affected by ICE. 

He cited the case of a 13-year-old girl who was detained alongside her  father for several days while family members had no information about their whereabouts. And Martinez described the ordeal of a Pitcairn father who was held while his wife gave birth to their son.

“His 5-year-old daughter was left afraid that her parents might disappear again,” Martinez said, adding that the trauma of seeing a parent detained follows children and families. “These are our neighbors, and the consequences of immigration enforcement extend far beyond the immediate moment of detention.”

Frontline Dignity has trained more than 3,000 people to lawfully recognize, document and respond to immigration enforcement. Through that work, the organization saw what is happening in communities every day and what the government is reporting. 

By comparing what its observers documented and federal detention records, Frontline Dignity identified patterns that demanded further scrutiny, Martinez said. It took its initial analysis to Deluzio’s office, which conducted its own analysis and produced the report. 

Among the report’s other findings:

• Out of the 209 detentions, 112 were coded under Section 287(g), meaning local law enforcement was involved.
• 140 of the 209 people detained had no criminal record or pending charges.
• And among the 112 detentions under 287(g), 91 people had no record or pending charges. 

Martinez said the involvement of local law enforcement in immigration enforcement also raises the question of whether police are engaging in racial profiling. He noted that community members have reported police repeatedly stopping white construction vans carrying people to work.

“According to those accounts, individuals have been turned over to ICE without receiving a clear explanation as to why they were stopped,” Martinez said, adding that Frontline Dignity has been unable to confirm the details of every stop. “No one should have to wonder whether the vehicle they drive, or the language they speak, or the color of their skin makes them a target.”

Deluzio added that detentions listed under 287(g) that occurred in municipalities with no agreement should be further investigated to determine which departments and officers were involved. 

“We should know which local law enforcement is engaged in this,” he said. “Are they outside their jurisdiction? Are they patrolling and being pulled away from their municipality, where they have responsibilities in local law enforcement, which again, I think, is the prime job of local law enforcement.”