Tensions build between immigration enforcement, local law enforcement

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Lewis County Jail Corrections Sgt. Ron Anderson shows how any ICE detainers the jail receives are placed loose in an inmate’s folder, so a phone call can be made when people are to be released.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Federal immigration authorities issued their first list last week to highlight jails that don’t cooperate with ICE detainers or requests for notification of release of aliens who are potentially removable from the country.

It’s possible it won’t be long before the Lewis County Jail lands on the list.

Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza says this isn’t a “sanctuary county” but, his jail doesn’t and won’t hold inmates for immigration officers to come and pick up based on a detainer.

When it’s time to be released, whether because they’ve posted bail or their sentence is served, inmates get set free.

“We will not keep you, unless you have a warrant,” said Snaza, a Republican who was elected to his position in 2014 with 77 percent of the vote in a two-way race.

The jail used to routinely honor the detainers, until a federal court case in 2014 in Oregon after which they changed their policies. Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said the court decision concluded the ICE detainer is not a warrant, it’s more like a letter.

“We don’t have the authority to hold anyone just on a detainer,” Meyer said.

Meyer didn’t know how many jurisdictions in Washington have taken the same position, but said he didn’t think the county’s interpretation was out of the norm.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a division of the Department of Homeland Security.

The report issued March 20 is required by an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on Jan. 25, according to DHS.

The agency stated it plans to publish a report weekly to inform the public of criminal actions committed by aliens and any jurisdictions which choose not to cooperate, potentially endangering Americans.

Neither the press release or companion report acknowledge the legal position that Lewis and other counties have taken.

“When law enforcement agencies fail to honor immigration detainers and release serious criminal offenders, it undermines ICE’s ability to protect the public safety and carry out its mission,” Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan stated. “Our goal is to build cooperative, respectful relationships with our law enforcement partners.”

The Lewis County Jail in Chehalis – the county seat – houses arrestees from sheriff’s deputies, from the Washington State Patrol and police from all the cities and towns within the county. It also holds those who are sentenced locally to less than one year.

On any given day, it’s population is roughly 200 inmates, give or take about 20.

Despite the sheriff’s stance, the jail isn’t entirely uncooperative.

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Corrections Officer Dave Rodkey, booking

Deputies enforce state laws and county codes, and don’t ask people about their citizenship or immigration status, according to Snaza.

However, when anyone is booked into the jail, one question is asked of all of them.

Where were you born?

If the answer is anything but inside the United States, corrections officers will notify ICE.

Jail staff don’t attempt to figure out anyone’s citizenship or immigration status, they leave that up to the immigration authorities.

Lewis County Jail Corrections Sgt. Ron Anderson said they fax information on foreign born individuals probably three or four times each month to the ICE field office in Seattle. And about once a month, ICE will fax back a detainer on someone.

The piece of paper goes into the inmate’s file and when it’s time for that person to get out, a corrections officer will phone ICE and let them know what time the individual is going to be released.

Anderson said maybe only once so far this year, an immigration officer has actually shown up and taken someone into their custody.

“It’s a lot different than it used to be,” he said.

Anderson, who has worked at the facility for 30 years, recalls the process before the 2014 change.

“If the agency said they couldn’t get down here till the next day, we would hold the person,” he said.

ICE used to come down and conduct sweeps, Anderson said.

DHS’s first report – called the Declined Detainer Outcome Report – contains a section which names the 10 “non-cooperative” jurisdictions which had the highest number of detainers issued to them during the seven-day period that began Jan. 28.

Two Pacific Northwest entities appear; Snohomish County with 12 detainers issued and Washington County in Oregon with seven.

Washington County Sheriff Pat Garrett issued a press release the same day, taking issue with the feds suggesting some choose not to cooperate.

“(It) does not accurately describe the difficulties or potential legal ramifications associated with honoring ICE detainer requests,” Garrett stated.

Sheriff Garrett went on to recount how in April 2014, a judge for the U.S. District Court of Oregon found Clackamas County violated Maria Miranda-Olivares’ constitutional rights, by holding her on an ICE detainer, ultimately costing taxpayers more than $100,000.

The ruling that detainer requests are unconstitutional led every county in Oregon to immediately stop honoring them, according to Garrett.

Like Sheriff Snaza and Prosecutor Meyer, Garrett said his county will honor any warrant or court order to detain a person.

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Lewis County Jail

Another section of the March 20 report includes a table presenting information about 206 declined detainers around the country during the seven-day period, naming the facility, the county and state, along with the country of citizenship and examples of criminal activity – charges or convictions – associated with each case.

ICE sends detainers if it possesses probable cause to believe that the alien is removable from the United States. The report notes however, the agency does not document in a systematically reportable manner, the immigration status of each target.

Another table in the report shows more than 100 jurisdictions throughout the country, of which ICE has become aware, which have policies that limit cooperation with ICE. The majority of them indicate they will not hold individuals solely on an ICE detainer, with several suggesting with various phrasing they will honor a warrant or court order.

Lewis County Undersheriff Wes Rethwill put it this way:

“We do have open lines of communications with all agencies,” he said. “But the whole detainer thing is a civil piece in the federal system, and we don’t act on civil stuff.”

Earlier this month, after news headlines abounded about presidential executive orders dealing with immigration and immigration bans, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office command team sent a memo to employees to affirm they were making no changes in how they operate.

“We will not go after people because of their status,” Snaza said. “That’s not our job.”

Prosecutor Meyer says the sheriff’s office is only authorized to enforce state law – and county ordinances – but not federal law.

Sheriff Snaza related that their primary mission is to keep the community and it’s people safe.

“In order to best accomplish this, we must build confidence so victims and witnesses to crimes come forward to report such criminal activity and/or seek assistance, as needed, without fear of becoming vulnerable to immigration repercussions,” his memo stated.

The memo reiterates that the sheriff’s office serves all people within Lewis County regardless of their immigrations status as well as noting that all people they come in contact with are entitled to the rights and protections of the state constitution and the U.S. Constitution.

The command team memo asks employees to be mindful of how their actions, statements and questions they can answer impact the public’s level of fear and trust in law enforcement.

These are tense times, Snaza said.

“When I hear of kids at school afraid of losing their mom or dad, that concerns me,” Snaza said.

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Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza

He said he was discouraged when he heard some ICE agents were hanging around courthouses to find people.

Snaza said he wishes everyone could work together to help “these folks” to ease their concerns and fears.

“I’m not going to go into a home and rip a family apart,” Snaza said. “It’s not my job and there’s no way I’ll do that.”

It’s a conversation that’s been had even around his own dinner table, Snaza said.

His father-in-law, a Marine who went to Vietnam, worked here for some 30 years on a green card before he decided to take steps to become a U.S. citizen, he said.

“Most people in the U.S. illegally want to make a better life for themselves,” Snaza said. “It’s a small percent that do the crime.”

ICE issued a press release yesterday announcing 84 foreign nationals were arrested during a recent three-day operation conducted in Washington, Alaska and Oregon.

They targeted at-large criminal aliens, illegal re-entrants, and immigration fugitives.

Sixty of them have criminal histories including prior convictions for sex crimes, drug offenses and domestic violence but the most common was driving under the influence, according to ICE.

Seven of them were women. They came from 12 countries, with the largest number (64) from Mexico.

The enforcement actions took place in 20 communities, and King County accounted for the largest number of arrestees at 19.

Among them, two people were picked up in Thurston County, three in Cowlitz County and one in Mason County.

Rose M. Richeson, public affairs officer for ICE for the Pacific Northwest, said she didn’t have a label for someone who arrived to this country with a visa and never left when they were supposed to.

“They’re not considered a priority, I don’t have a term for those people,” she said.

However, if they are picked up, they are dealt with on a case by case basis, she said.

Prosecutor Meyer today said the Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys is working with ICE to see if there are ways local jurisdictions could honor a new form of detainer.

“I worry it may have a chilling effect on victims reporting crimes,” Meyer said. “Our laws have to mean something.”

Sheriff Snaza shared a memo he received today from the Washington State Sheriff’s Association taking exception to ICE’s label of some as uncooperative.

Every sheriff in the state complies with the federal court decision that precludes them from holding inmates on ICE detainer requests, Cowlitz County Sheriff Mark Nelson, president of the WSSA wrote.

“Sheriffs need to uphold what is legal and what is right and not bend to political pressure or convenience,” Nelson stated. “The public expects us to enforce the law while obeying the law.”

Nelson’s letter notes that after the 2014 court decision within the Ninth Federal Circuit, sheriffs reached out to ICE in order to find a workable solution.

“ICE’s position has been less than cooperative,” Nelson wrote. “Their current approach has the potential to undermine long standing relationships between federal and local agencies.”

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Lewis County Jail, Southwest Chehalis Avenue

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24 Responses to “Tensions build between immigration enforcement, local law enforcement”

  1. Bigguyontheright says:

    It’s one thing to disagree or even dislike an elected official.

    But attacking the sheriff’s family because you don’t like or agree with him reflects on ones intelligence, or lack of in this case.

    Sheriff Snaza has a legal obligation to enforce the laws. That means he has to follow the orders, case law, set by higher courts. Which by the way he is doing when it comes to immigration violations.

    Cowlitz County Sheriff Mark Nelson, the.president of the state of Washington Sheriff’s Association posted a you tube video last week outlining the court cases our police must follow.

    Go to the web, or sheriff Nelson web site and you can become better informed on the matter.

    I want to see all the people who are in our county illegally be picked up and returned to their own country. They can come to our country in accordance with the law.

    But understand the law before you critics jump on our Sheriff or police officers.

    Stop the hate, stop attacking the families ofc our Sheriff.

  2. Information says:

    It might be a good idea for many in Lewis County to understand the difference between an “executive order”, a “detainer”, and a “warrant”.
    It also might be a good thing for them to understand what it means when the Supreme Court makes a ruling in this country. People seem to think that the term “illegal” covers everyone in the country that is not a US citizen. And it also may be important to understand that even if one is in the country illegally, they still have the benefit of all the protections of the US government.

  3. Wyatt says:

    Their cartel protection payment came in. The trailer parks were fine until the Mexicans moved in. Now the smell of refried beans and cadillac escalades litter the park. Much better. Remember to check those gas tanks for meth!

  4. Counting Chromosomes says:

    Electing Brian Green would take a force of nature in a county that only concerns itself with the parts of the constitution with which it likes. Judge a book by its cover and read what they want between selected lines. Lewis County, where “Stihl” is regarded as a request and not a name, and its still generally understood the initial concept of the “and all men are created equal (except women, indians and niggers)”

    (Spits on the floor)

    A constitutionalist would be a hell of a sheriff. The conservative trash need to go back to the trailer park.

  5. Counting Chromosomes says:

    It’s “enforce” you right wing inbred ill informed water head.

  6. Peabody Slim says:

    We out number these corrupt officials 10,000 to 1 never forget this fact.

  7. Elected dip-shits ! says:

    Thank you sheriff SNATCHA . Your ass is there to inforce the law not retroactively pick and choose witch one you will have your lackys inforce , and can I guess that your family is full of illegal immigrants?? So I think that it is time the public start to pick and choose which laws we obey ! At this point all laws are becoming just suggestions ! Worthless ,state,county workers! All need to be replaced!!

  8. Exceptionally Normal says:

    The salient issue, regarding the individuals at the heart of this specific article, is two fold. The first, obviously, is that they are already breaking United States FEDERAL LAW by entering into the United States illegally. Secondly, while here, they are taking the opportunity to violate state criminal laws, ergo the reason why they are locked – up in the county jail to begin with.

    I suspect those advocating on behalf of the violators, are motivated less by altruism, than self serving desires. i.e. Chamber of Commerce and various unscrupulous employers – excess labor force means lower wages. Catholic Archdioceses – keepin’ those collection plates full. And of course, we can’t forget those addicted to methamphetamine, heroin and black market synthetic opioids. Got to keep that drug pipeline open. Almost forgot the pedophiles! Unfettered illegal undocumented entry is a boom for sex trafficking.
    Washington state has the dubious honor – according to FBI statistics – as being one of the states with the highest incidents of children being used for this deplorable soul-killing deviance.

  9. Copper Penny says:

    Not agreeing with the Sheriff’s actions on ICE does not somehow translate into the former candidate Green suddenly becoming retro qualified for the office.

  10. Been A Victim says:

    SallyJo – I agree it is a big mess, but the economic effect it has is when they do the jobs no one else wants, but steal someone else’s social security number to file their un-taxed wages. It happened to me 3 years in a row before the IRS finally got around to figuring it out. I was told the person received a refund all 3 years and no amount of money to hire the best attorney would help in prosecuting them because of privacy laws! Excuse me??? They literally had the name and address of the person responsible and did nothing! Where do you think the money came from that they illegally claimed? You guessed it…TAX PAYERS!! So yes, absolutely, illegals do cause economic disaster. They need to be here legally or not at all. Period.

  11. Bo Rupert says:

    I told all you guys you should have elected Brian Green. Hmmmmmm…….Bo Rupert was right again.

  12. Wyatt says:

    By entering a country without papers you are committing a crime nothing to do with races or xenophobia or rainbows or gay pride just because nforce the laws and quit bringing your religious personal beliefs to work with you. Do your damn job soldier!

  13. Northwest Focus says:

    The term illegal immigrant is self explanatory. What’s interesting is Prosecutor Oscar Meyer claims that the sheriff does not have authority to enforce federal law yet Sheriff Sanders-Snaza apparently has authority to grant those same rights to “All people they come in contact with”. That’s a huge problem! Again, illegal immigrants are simply that.

  14. Here's your sign... says:

    Sheriff Snaza and Prosecutor Meyer are following the law. Trump is not King Trump and rule of law applies to him also. If Trump issues an executive order that is challenged in the courts by a judge and it costs a county 100k because they acted outside the scope of the law following a half baked Trump order well….maybe Trump can flip out his check book and pay the judgments.

    “Retired not Retarted says:” Well your name says it all….but one of the reasons your taxes are what they are is because 13.2% of Lewis County is on disability and the unemployment rate for Lewis County is 8.1%. 21.3% of Lewis County that is not much a tax base for one reason or another.
    But what the heck…blame the illegals from down south on all your problems.

    Below are the links I got those numbers from. Oh I forgot FAKE News!!! It’s all FAKE news!!!

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/local/2017/03/30/disabled-or-just-desperate/

    https://fortress.wa.gov/esd/employmentdata/reports-publications/economic-reports/monthly-employment-report/map-of-county-unemployment-rates

  15. GoodGrief says:

    “One more reason!” – I say: Go. I, for one, don’t want your bigoted, xenophobic, racist kind around my children and loved ones.

    “Wyatt” says: “Illegals are criminals by nature ” – Wrong. That is the racist message that simple people want to believe because they are afraid of change and fear differences. Immigrants are often the kind of citizens we WANT: family members who feel so strongly about their family, they are willing to risk life and limb to give them a better life. Many citizens HERE won’t work so hard for their families. Immigrants pay rent, buy food, pay sales tax, work hard and GROW our economy and do NOT qualify for social services (see link below).

    They create diversity which is a good thing. And not a one of you have mentioned any white immigrants whose paperwork is not in order. Must be because ALL white people are innocent, I guess. No such thing as illegal white people. Except that ALL of us are immigrants and ALL of us are illegal since we invaded a country that was already occupied. This is about racism and racism is about fear and ignorance.

    http://money.cnn.com/2014/11/20/news/economy/immigration-myths/

  16. Jacks says:

    Leave snaza alone haters

  17. Sherman says:

    I am a Republican. Sheriff Snaza’s position of a courtesy call of an inmate’s release date for ICE detainers is both professional and legally sound. An executive order is not a law, nor do county and state law enforcement have the jurisdiction to enforce federal law. Trump’s efforts to make America white again through illegal immigration bans and ineffectual border walls only exposes the real racists hiding here in Lewis County. Yo no habla Español.

  18. BleeBloo says:

    Last time I checked, Lewis County is part of the United States of America.

  19. Ervin says:

    There are a few things I could say But to sum it up Its time for Mr Snaza to find a new job. And I Thought you Mr Snaza were working with us

  20. Retired not Retarted says:

    Our sheriff here in Lewis County needs a wave goodbye. He’s not doing his job by enforcing some laws and ignoring others. It’s not the sheriff’s job to enforce federal law?? HUH? When did that happen? Anyone arrested that cannot provide proof of citizenship should IMMEDIATELY be reported to ICE, instead of waiting until they are about to be released. It’s no surprise that Lewis County is bankrupting it’s residents with tax increases and new levies to pay for schools and public and police services. Foreign arrivals sneaking across the border are protected and provided benefits and sanctuary. Not in my city, Rob! Do your job and quit calling yourself a Republican.

  21. SallyJo says:

    I don’t think it’s a personal decision to not deport. It’s more of an economic one. If they held detainees, there would soon be no room to hold inmates. No one is willing to pay the costs.
    This is just a big mess. Trump is a big mess. He made promises that with very little research one could tell he couldn’t keep.
    I don’t understand why everyone wants to get rid of illegal mexicans. It’s not like any citizen wants their jobs. It’s not fair to separate families, not morally and certainly not economically.

  22. Wyatt says:

    Funny when the president makes a executive order county and state officials turn all states rights and city state. might as well fly a rebel flag at the court house and cash their checks at the bank of Mexico. Cops enforce laws it’s up to the judges to interpret them. Illegals are criminals by nature we have immigration laws. Follow the laws in place and enforce then. Try each and every one of them let the judges rule on each individual in violation. Policy is set by the president not some Oregon county judge,… lol. All of them would be found guilty because they are citizens of another country with no work visas!!! Charge them with immigration violations and hold them with out bail until federal agents can do their job. What a punk move Lewis county! Nothing to do with detainers or letters it’s bringing criminals to justice!

  23. One more reason! says:

    One more reason to move my business and family to another state ! Worthless elected ass-holes!! Hey Jon , the illegal scum came into this country illegally! Do your job! And maybe some squat thrusts!!