The Carroll County Quorum Court voted 7-4 Tuesday, Aug. 18, to establish a special fund to receive federal money associated with the sheriff’s office’s participation in a controversial immigration enforcement program. However, because the proposal included an emergency clause, it required a two-thirds majority vote and therefore failed to gain passage.
The vote came after lengthy public comments and discussion over the sheriff’s office’s participation in the federal 287(g) Task Force Model, which gives designated deputies limited immigration-enforcement authority.
Justices of the Peace Harrie Farrow, Hunter Rivett, Jerry King and Caroline Rogers voted against the ordinance.
Sheriff Daniel Klatt told the court that participation in the task-force program is expected to generate between $250,000 and $300,000 in federal grant funding this fiscal year and more than $500,000 next year. The ordinance creates a separate county fund to account for revenue and expenditures associated with the program.
Klatt emphasized that the ordinance did not authorize the sheriff’s office to participate in the program. He said the office has been participating since March and that the fund is necessary to receive and account for federal money.
“There is no county funds going in or out of this budget,” Klatt said. “It is solely for the grant funding.”
Klatt said Arkansas Act 654 requires sheriffs to participate in the 287(g) Warrant Service Officer program, which authorizes trained correctional officers to serve administrative immigration warrants and detainers on individuals already in jail custody.
Participation in the broader Task Force Model, however, gives designated deputies additional immigration-enforcement authority during their regular duties.
Klatt said the sheriff’s office does not intend to change its enforcement practices.
“We are not changing the way we handle migrants in this community,” he said.
Farrow questioned Klatt extensively about the difference between the mandatory warrant-service program and the additional authority provided under the Task Force Model.
Farrow cited language in the agreement that authorizes participating officers to question a person believed to be an immigrant about his or her right to remain in the United States and, under certain circumstances, make an arrest without a warrant.
“That’s above and beyond just saying, ‘hey, we’ve got someone in detention,’ ” Farrow said.
Klatt acknowledged that the agreement gives deputies additional authority but said he does not intend for them to use it to conduct immigration sweeps or target people based on their appearance or ethnicity.
“We have the authority to do lots of things,” Klatt said. “It doesn’t mean we exercise it.”
Klatt said deputies have been operating under the agreement since March without an increase in immigration enforcement. He said officers typically deal with immigration-status questions after someone has been arrested for another offense and that he intends for that practice to continue.
Klatt also disputed suggestions that the federal funding creates an incentive for deputies to make more immigration arrests. He said the grant requires at least one qualifying action during a quarter but that the amount of money does not increase with the number of arrests.
“It doesn’t matter if we get one or 500,” Klatt said. “It’s the same.”
Several residents urged Klatt to withdraw from the Task Force Model, arguing that the additional authority could lead to racial profiling and damage trust between law enforcement and Carroll County’s Hispanic community.
Shiloh Grace, executive director of The Purple Flower Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Resource and Support Center, said the organization is already seeing immigrant victims who are afraid to involve law enforcement.
Grace said the organization encounters immigrant clients at least once a month who are unwilling to contact law enforcement or seek an order of protection because of immigration concerns. She said abusers have also threatened immigrant victims with calling law enforcement if they attempt to leave.
Grace urged Klatt to withdraw from what she described as the optional Task Force Model.
Odra DeLeon, a Green Forest City Council member and president of Alianza Hispana, told the court she was born in Guatemala and has lived in Carroll County since 1994.
“Remember that we are your neighbors, we are your friends, and that we come here for a better life,” DeLeon said.
DeLeon said she understood the sheriff’s office needs additional funding but questioned whether the program could eventually lead to racial profiling.
“Are we going to be racially profiled just because we’re brown?” she asked.
Resident Arturo Calvillo also opposed the program, saying Carroll County’s Hispanic population has played an important role in the county’s workforce and economy.
“I don’t think this ICE thing is the right way to go,” Calvillo said. “That money costs way too much.”
Klatt said the sheriff’s office does not have the manpower to conduct separate immigration operations. He said county dispatch has received 18,935 calls for service this year, including 9,716 calls handled by the sheriff’s office.
“The focus has always been on criminals, not everyday folks,” Klatt said.
When the ordinance came up for consideration later in the meeting, Farrow again spoke against it, focusing on the potential effect on the relationship between law enforcement and the Hispanic community.
Farrow recalled the late Berryville Police Chief David Muniz’s relationship with the local Hispanic community and said trust between residents and law enforcement makes communities safer.
Deaton repeatedly noted that the measure before the court did not determine whether the sheriff would participate in the program.
“All we’re voting on the matter is whether to create an account to deal with this,” Deaton said. “That’s all we’re voting on.”
The ordinance establishes the “287(g) ICE Program Fund” on the books of the county clerk and treasurer. It includes an emergency clause because federal payments associated with the program may be imminent.
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