Two Arizona sheriff's offices among wave of new 287(g) agreements
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Two Arizona sheriff's offices applied for new 287(g) agreements this year, a small part of a wave of law enforcement agencies entering into immigration enforcement contracts with federal officials since President Trump took office.
The big picture: Arizona has eight of the nearly 650 active 287(g) agreements in the United States.
- ICE has initiated 514 new 287(g) agreements in 40 states since Trump took office in January, ProPublica and Arizona Luminaria reported Monday.
Zoom in: The Navajo and Yuma county sheriff's offices applied for their agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this year, though Yuma's remains pending.
- Before that, the only agencies in the state with 287(g) agreements were the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR); the city of Mesa; and the La Paz, Pinal and Yavapai county sheriff's offices. La Paz County has two agreements.
Context: 287(g) is a provision of federal law under which state and local agencies can be certified to enforce aspects of immigration law. There are three types of agreements:
- The jail enforcement model: Agencies can identify and process immigrants subject to removal from the country following arrests.
- The warrant service officer program: ICE trains and authorizes law enforcement to serve and execute immigration warrants in jails.
- The task force model: Local agencies can enforce immigration laws in the community. That was phased out by the Obama administration but was renewed this year by Trump.
ADCRR, Mesa, and Pinal and Yavapai counties have jail enforcement agreements; Navajo and Yuma counties signed up for warrant service officer agreements; and La Paz County has both.
What they're saying: Incoming Mesa police chief Dan Butler recently posted a video online emphasizing his department has a jail enforcement agreement.
- "This means we do not go out into the community and actively search for people based on immigration status," said Butler, currently the department's executive assistant chief.
State of play: No Arizona agency has a task force agreement, though ICE sent emails earlier this year encouraging many to apply.
- "We have a limited number of resources at ICE," border czar Tom Homan told Axios. The 287(g) agreements are "a force multiplier."
Why it matters: The nationwide increase in 287(g) agreements comes amid a massive immigration crackdown by the Trump administration.
- In Phoenix and other cities, that's included ICE agents recently detaining people outside immigration courts as they left their hearings.
Zoom out: An Axios review found law enforcement agencies in Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia have been most active in using 287(g) agreements to detain people.
- There were 42,000 removals of immigrants ordered in March.
The intrigue: Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen (R-Gilbert) this year sponsored legislation, dubbed the Arizona ICE Act, that would have forced law enforcement agencies to enter into 287(g) agreements.
- At the request of sheriffs, Petersen amended that provision out of the bill.
The amended legislation, which would have barred local governments from adopting rules and regulations prohibiting law enforcement cooperation with ICE, was vetoed by Gov. Katie Hobbs in April.