Some sheriffs in Utah are doubling down on their cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In many cases, these partnerships, known as 287(g) agreements, have formalized preexisting cooperation. However, in Utah County and other communities, they’ve faced opposition from residents and raised questions about what this means for community members without legal status.
The only agencies in the state that have signed any 287(g) agreements so far are seven sheriff’s offices (Beaver, Kane, Sanpete, Tooele, Utah, Washington and Weber) and the Utah Department of Corrections. The Ogden Police Department, West Valley City Police Department and Utah Highway Patrol all told KUER they have no plans to sign onto the 287(g) program.
Even in the absence of agreements, when it comes to criminal investigations, local law enforcement does share information with ICE.
What do 287(g) agreements do?
The agreements establish official cooperation between law enforcement agencies and ICE, and there are three models of participation.
The Warrant Service Officer and Jail Enforcement Model have to do with people who are already held in prison or jail and don’t have legal status in the United States. These agreements don’t make huge changes, since sheriffs across Utah already tell ICE if they have someone in the jail without legal status.
The Task Force Model, however, could affect people in the community. After signing on, an agency selects some officers to complete special training with ICE. Upon completion, those officers get the power to enforce some immigration laws.
So far, the sheriff’s offices in Tooele, Utah, Washington and Weber counties have signed onto the Task Force Model.
What changes with a Task Force Model agreement?
The Task Force Model gives designated officers the power to ask anyone about their immigration status — and make arrests, in some cases. Those trained individuals will have access to information in ICE databases, and that’s what the Weber County Sheriff’s Office is focusing on, said Sheriff Ryan Arbon.
Their designated deputies will be able to check for themselves if an individual they encounter or bring into the jail is in ICE’s system, rather than waiting for ICE to check after someone is booked. Arbon said this will only affect people whom deputies encounter during standard law enforcement operations.
“We don't have organized teams that are going out doing sweeps or raids. We’re not doing that,” he said.
If the trained officer has reason to believe someone is in the country illegally and is a flight risk, they could also make an arrest. The Weber sheriff isn’t planning to use those powers — at least for the time being.
“We're not using it now, and in the very short term, we're not planning to use that full extent, in primary because we don't need to,” Arbon said. “But as situations change, we may have to. It's in place and we may use it, absolutely.”
What happens when a driver is pulled over in Utah?
The Utah Highway Patrol has long communicated with other law enforcement agencies. During a traffic stop, troopers search for somebody’s name and license plate in the Utah Criminal Justice Information System. If they find an active warrant, they contact the issuing agency and may serve the warrant. In the case of a warrant from ICE, troopers will notify ICE, but unless there’s a criminal violation, they will only detain the person for the time required to complete the enforcement action that prompted the stop.
In a local traffic stop, police probably won’t know if the person they pulled over is in the country illegally, said Ogden Chief of Police Jake Sube. The Ogden Police Department is not participating in 287(g), so it does not have the authority to enforce immigration laws. Officers don’t do anything differently if they pull someone over with a driving privilege card versus a driver’s license, Sube said.
If an officer sees a warrant in the system for the person they’ve pulled over, they’ll follow the instructions on the warrant, Sube said. That could mean notifying ICE of the encounter, but the police would not hold the individual longer than it takes to complete the traffic stop.
“If we conduct traffic stops, our role is not immigration. We're not going to be asking people's immigration status,” Sube said.
Because of Weber County’s 287(g) Task Force Model participation, a specially-trained sheriff’s deputy there would be able to search ICE’s files for an individual they’ve pulled over if they suspect the person is in the country illegally, said Sheriff Arbon. This could happen if someone provides no identification, for instance.
“We have to identify them. So this allows us, if we believe this person may be from another country, then we can have limited access … to ICE's system, and then we can search up this person and see if this person is on that list.”
Keeping track of which agencies have which powers can be confusing. And immigration attorney Dan Black worries some officers may ask people about their status, even if it’s against department policy.
“Our advice to everyone who is speaking with a law enforcement officer in the state of Utah during a traffic stop is to answer only the questions that are relevant to the traffic stop,” he said, noting drivers can ask to have an attorney present for further questions.
Macy Lipkin is a Report for America corps member who reports for KUER in northern Utah.
