Alachua County Commission to consider ICE resolution on Tuesday
BY JENNIFER CABRERA
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – On Tuesday, August 11, Alachua County Commissioners will consider a resolution “expressing community concerns regarding law enforcement practices, affirming compliance with [state laws], and encouraging transparency in law enforcement identification.”
The resolution is the Board’s response to activists who have shown up at multiple County Commission and Gainesville City Commission meetings since April with a list of demands that includes opposing any ICE offices in Alachua County.
“Not intended to create or resemble a sanctuary policy”
The resolution acknowledges that Florida statutes prohibit sanctuary policies and require local law enforcement agencies to support federal immigration enforcement, and the agenda item states, “The resolution is not intended to create or resemble a sanctuary policy” and “does not direct law enforcement agencies to decline immigration detainers or restrict the exchange of information with federal immigration authorities.”
The “Whereas” section of the resolution states that the Board recognizes that the existence of federal immigration-related law enforcement offices or detention facilities within the county “could affect community trust and may create conditions in which residents feel less safe and willing to engage with local government and public safety agencies.” The document also says these facilities may put demands on County services and infrastructure.
Another paragraph states that the Board “has concerns about enforcement actions — whether immigration-related or otherwise — that may be indiscriminate, based on profiling, or otherwise destructive, recognizing that such actions erode public trust.”
The document also “urges” all law enforcement officers “to identify themselves clearly with their proper authority and without masks.”
These Commissioners imposed a mask mandate on law enforcement officers through September 2021
Alachua County imposed a mask mandate on every law enforcement officer and citizen in the county on May 2, 2020, and this same group of Commissioners extended the mandate until September 30, 2021.
“Nonbinding policy statement”
The resolution is described as a “nonbinding policy statement” and affirms support for local law enforcement duties; reaffirms a commitment to “community safety and constitutional protections,… including access to county services without fear or hesitation”; expresses concerns about “indiscriminate or destructive arrest practices,… recognizing that such actions undermine public confidence, deter cooperation with local government and law enforcement, and disrupt community stability”; and urges all law enforcement to display official identification and refrain from wearing masks, coordinate with local authorities to “minimize unintended impacts on public safety,” and provide clear information “when engagement with residents is necessary.”
“The possibility of unintended federal-funding consequences warrants consideration”
In an agenda document, County Attorney Sylvia Torres warns that “the possibility of unintended federal-funding consequences warrants consideration, as federal agencies may interpret policy statements differently.” The County’s schedule of federal and state grants “reflects $29,397,466 in federal expenditures for FY25… These programs support housing, emergency response, public safety, transportation, and social services.”
The document also notes concerns from the Continuum of Care that anti-ICE resolutions could jeopardize $11 million in federal funding for homeless services.
However, Torres wrote, “The County Attorney has reviewed the resolution for consistency with [Florida statutes]… The resolution does not conflict with state law and does not direct County staff or law enforcement agencies to take any action that would violate statutory requirements.”
Tuesday’s meeting begins at 11:30 a.m.
This is a stupid thing for the county commission to even waste time discussing.
People flaunting those shirts don’t understand that LEGAL immigrants do belong—there is a process.
As for those individuals, I suggest they try crossing the borders of Iran, North Korea, China, or Russia wearing those shirts and see how well that works out for them. Show us how it’s done or sit down.
Hell, hell, let them go across the Mexico border wearing that shirt and see what happens to them
How many of these people have actually done a Ride Along with an officer? I recommend you ride a day shift and midnight shift on a full moon. That should give you a picture of what these officers deal with.
Notice that even after Fauci claims in Court proving Masks Do Not Work and Never did against 19, every fake valor claiming member wears a mask. Wait for them to pass Social Judgement on You
The clown show continues at the County Commission…
Gainesville must have a bumper crop of law skool grads seeking work in a college town? I’d say they have low IQs and probably won’t pass the bar exam anyway.
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For those that are protesting, maybe you should welcome into your homes some of those undesirable immigrants that are here illegally. Besides ICE is Federal and they are above all other agencies concerning those that are here illegally. Better yet, round them all up and house them out at the road camp and put them to work on the potholes.
Traitors to the US constitution and rule of law.