Keller might join ICE. Will other Tarrant County cities follow? We asked police
Come August, Keller could be the largest city in Texas to sign up for a program allowing local law enforcement to work with federal immigration authorities. Will other Tarrant County police departments follow suit?
The 287(g) program allows state and local law enforcement agencies to partner with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “keep their communities safer” by collaborating with the federal agency on some immigration enforcement actions.
The Keller Police Department has been reporting the immigration status of people booked into its jail to ICE for the last two years, Mayor Armin Mizani told the Star-Telegram last week. The City Council’s approval of the measure would simply formalize that cooperation. The department has booked 31 individuals without legal status into the jail in that time.
“This is about protecting victims, supporting federal law, and preventing dangerous individuals from slipping through the cracks and reoffending in our communities,” Mizani said in a statement announcing the partnership on social media.
The Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office has participated in the 287(g) program since 2017. Keller would be the first city in the county to get on board. Will others follow its move? We asked police departments to see what their plans are.
How does the 287(g) program work?
State and local law enforcement agencies can choose from three 287(g) program models when partnering with ICE.
Keller will vote on participating in the program’s Jail Enforcement Model, which is designed for local agencies to identify arrestees without legal status and turn them over to ICE custody.
This is the model that the Sheriff’s Office signed up for, as well. So people arrested by police departments that do not have their own jails, including the Fort Worth Police Department, can expect to have their immigration status checked when booked into the Tarrant County jail system.
In addition to Keller, the Arlington, Mansfield, North Richland Hills and Grandprairie police departments also have their own jails, which serve smaller neighboring departments. The Colleyville, Roanoke and Southlake police departments use the Keller jail. Keller provides police services to Westlake.
Another way for a local agency to partner with ICE through its jail is the Warrant Service Officer Model, which “allows ICE to train, certify and authorize state and local law enforcement officers to serve and execute administrative warrants on aliens in their agency’s jail,” according to the ICE website.
This is the most popular option for counties in Texas. Of the 90 Texas counties that participate in at least one of the models, 59 are signed up through the Warrant Service Officer Model. There are 34 Jail Enforcement Model agreements in Texas. Several counties participate in more than one model.
The third option is the Task Force Model, which allows local law agencies to perform some immigration enforcement actions during their normal policing duties. There are 25 Task Force Model agreements in Texas, two of which belong to the Texas National Guard and the Texas Attorney General’s Office.
Gov. Greg Abbott last week signed a bill into law requiring all Texas sheriffs to sign up for the 287(g) program. The Denton County Sheriff’s Office is one of seven Texas sheriff’s offices with pending program applications.
Do other police departments in Tarrant County plan to join 287(g)?
The Star-Telegram reached out to over two dozen police departments in Tarrant County to ask if they had plans to participate in the 287(g) program.
Some, like the Fort Worth, Arlington, Grapevine and White Settlement police departments, said they have had no discussions about joining the program. River Oaks Deputy Police Chief Eric Perkins said his department also has no plans to participate.
Representatives of the Colleyville and Southlake police departments pointed to their agencies’ use of the Keller jail. They did not specify if their departments had plans to sign up for the Task Force Model, but emphasized their support of law enforcement at all levels.
“The Southlake Police Department maintains strong relationships with its local, state, and federal law enforcement partners, which enhance its ability to protect the community,” said Blas Hernandez, a captain in the Southlake Police Department. “We will continue to evaluate programs available through these partnerships to determine how best to maintain a high level of safety and security.”
The North Richland Hills Police Department does not have plans to join the program, but like Keller, it already checks arrestees’ immigration status when booking them into its jail.
“Every person booked into our jail undergoes fingerprinting, which includes a check of their immigration status,” said spokesperson Carissa Katekaru. “If an immigration hold is discovered, we coordinate with ICE to facilitate a transfer to their custody.”
The cities of Watauga, Richland Hills and Haltom City use the North Richland Hills jail.
Crowley Police Department spokesperson Nikki McDaniel said the agency does not plan to sign up for 287(g), opting to keep its public safety focus local.
“We believe that concentrating our efforts on community engagement and enhancing local law enforcement activities is essential for fostering positive relationships and ensuring the safety of our community,” she said.
Representatives of the police departments in Blue Mound, Burleson, Euless, Everman, Forest Hill, Hurst, Kennedale, Lakeside, Mansfield, Pantego, Saginaw, Watauga and Westworth Village did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
