I applaud Niagara County Sheriff Michael Filicetti for his principled decision to change his policy on housing immigrant detainees.
Last week, the sheriff announced that he will accept immigrants only when they are accused of a criminal offense or when a judge has issued a warrant for their arrest. The jail will not accept anyone without a judicial warrant.
This is a victory for constitutional rights and due process, guaranteed to anyone living in the United States.
The vast majority of detainees picked up by federal immigration agents have never been accused of a criminal offense. Most of them have some kind of legal standing, such as asylum seekers and refugees, and have active civil cases working their way through the courts. Many were invited here after disasters in their own nations, including Haiti, Venezuela and Ukraine.
They are our neighbors, most of them hardworking and productive.
Federal agents have been violating constitutional and civil rights by snatching anyone who looks “foreign” off the streets and illegally detaining them without due process. Many have been assaulted. Some have died. There is no accountability.
No one belongs in jail unless they have been accused of a crime or convicted. Otherwise, it’s immoral and violates the Constitution.
I fully support cooperation between the Sheriff’s Department and federal immigration agencies in the case of criminal behavior. No one wants violent criminals in our county or country. But most of those rounded up by ICE are not criminals. They are not the “worst of the worst.”
My church has resettled three immigrant families from Southeast Asia and I proudly helped in that effort. Currently I support several local refugee agencies, including Catholic Charities. Immigrants make our nation strong.
I’m also a proud member of Stand Up Lockport, a group of citizens who respectfully brought this matter to the attention of Sheriff Filicetti and other county officials. They listened with respect in return.
One big issue was liability. Across the country, people wrongfully detained have won huge lawsuits against municipalities. Niagara County is self-insured, so housing detainees with no criminal warrant exposed taxpayers to great financial risk.
Sheriff Filicetti may face criticism from those who think all immigrants should be deported. For my part, I respect the sheriff as a man of honor who is following the law. He did the right thing, and I salute him.