Mass State Police: Aiding Trump's Deportation, Not in Mission

BOSTON – The Massachusetts State Police say its mission is not to “investigate and enforce violations of federal immigration law,” leaving deportation responsibilities solely to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“It is not appropriate for a member of the state police to inquire about the immigration or travel status of an individual for the sole purpose of facilitating that individual’s potential detention or deportation by (ICE),” the agency’s immigration status policy states.

A spokesperson for the agency shared the policy with The Boston Herald after Gov. Maura Healey made the statement The state police will not assist in mass deportations under the incoming Trump administration.

The policy provides a “framework for certain situations that arise,” the spokesperson told the Herald.

“A member of the state police may investigate the immigration or travel status of an individual if the investigation is part of, and reasonably likely to facilitate, the investigation of a violation of state law, federal criminal law (excluding federal immigration law)” , according to the law. policy states, “or conduct independent of immigration status that poses a threat to public safety or order.”

Critics have accused Healey of backtracking on the federal government’s responsibility for the migrant crisis, which is expected to cost the state more than $1 billion annually for several fiscal years.

“No, absolutely not,” the governor told MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell when he asked her whether state police would support Trump’s efforts to deport illegal immigrants.

“But let me say this,” she said, “I think it’s important that we all recognize that there’s going to be a lot of pressure on states and state officials, and I can assure you that we’re going to work very hard. to deliver.”

The Center for Immigration Studies estimated in July that “the number of illegal and inadmissible immigrants living in Massachusetts” is approximately 355,000. The influx has pushed the state’s emergency shelter system to full capacity for months.

Healey has been critical of the FBI and their “passivity” in addressing the problems crisis that stretches from coast to coast. She has blasted Republicans in Congress for rejecting a bipartisan deal to address the border last spring at Trump’s request.

The governor spoke about the issue at an unrelated news conference in Boston on Friday morning.

“I’m not sure what the Trump administration is planning in terms of its actions around immigration, deportations and the like,” Healey told reporters. “I really hope that the new administration will make an effort to secure the border and work with the new Congress to pass a law that will actually resolve this issue… which has been dragging on for far too long.”

Paul Diego Craney, spokesman for the watchdog Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, advised the governor to stop using “taxpayer funding to protect these people and instead work with the new administration to solve this problem.”

“Now is the time to put aside partisan ideology,” Craney told the Herald on Saturday, “and work to fix the broken immigration system that has allowed millions of illegal immigrants and inadmissible migrants to enter our country and into Massachusetts entered.”

State police and local law enforcement agencies also face restrictions when ICE files a detainer against an individual, a separate issue that has come to attention in recent weeks and months.

Prisoners request that local or state law enforcement authorities “retain custody of the noncitizen for a period not to exceed 48 hours beyond the time the person would otherwise be released.”

“Department members have NO authority to detain, arrest, and/or detain any individual solely on the basis of an ICE detainer,” MSP’s policy reads.

Following the state Supreme Court’s Lunn ruling, Massachusetts courts lack the authority to “arrest and detain an individual solely (on the basis of) federal civil immigrant detention, beyond the time the individual would otherwise be entitled to release from state custody.”

The decision, made in 2017 during Healey’s tenure as attorney general, also left it up to the Legislature to issue such authority if necessary.

Despite the murky situation, some current and former local law enforcement officials say cooperation with the FBI is crucial.

Worcester County Sheriff Lewis Evangelidis cited data from the Massachusetts Office of Refugees and Immigrants showing that the Bay State has witnessed a 1,000% increase in the number of refugees and immigrants over the past three years.

Within that period, the sheriff said he had seen a “significant increase in criminal activity” and a “tripling in the number of ICE detainees placed on inmates at the Worcester County Jail and House of Correction.”

“The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office has always and will continue to work with our federal partners to provide them with information regarding individuals who pose a threat to our community,” Evangelidis told the Herald on Friday. “It is the responsibility of our federal partner to determine what to do with that information.”

Trump says tackling illegal immigration will be a top priority when he returns to power in January. He plans to deport the approximately 11 million people estimated to be in the country illegally.

He has discussed using local and state law enforcement agencies and deploying the National Guard, which can be activated on a governor’s order. Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser, has said sympathetic Republican governors would send troops to nearby states that refuse to participate.

State Rep. Steven Xiarhos, a Republican, has worked for the Yarmouth Police Department for 40 years, including the last 10 years as deputy chief. He and his colleagues worked closely with state police and ICE “when necessary,” he told the Herald on Saturday.

“Public safety must always be our top priority,” Xiarhos said. “The governor’s recent statement is concerning as it appears to complicate the balance between respecting federal immigration law and ensuring the safety of our communities.”

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