Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier threatened to remove Tampa Mayor Jane Castor from office if she does not reverse police department immigration policies by March 31. Uthmeier sent a letter to Castor accusing the Tampa Police Department of maintaining sanctuary policies that violate state law regarding immigration enforcement. The attorney general said these policies include restricting immigration enforcement actions and prohibiting officers from sharing certain information with federal immigration authorities.
“TPD ostensibly supports these policies because they do not want illegal aliens to be concerned with immigration consequences by cooperating with law enforcement,” Uthmeier wrote. “But we want illegal aliens to fear immigration consequences to the extent they are here unlawfully. These sorts of policies that flout our Nation’s immigration laws positively contribute to the mass influx of illegal aliens that Florida has experienced.” The policies in question prevent Tampa police from sharing information about victims or witnesses of crimes, including their immigration status, with federal immigration authorities.
“Tampa is one of the safest cities of our size in the nation because we built trust with our community through collaboration,” Castor said in a statement. “The Tampa Police Department signed the 287(g) and developed its immigration enforcement policy in consultation with partner agencies and law enforcement associations to ensure all immigration-related actions are carried out according to state and federal law.” Castor said the city will review the state’s concerns and evaluate policies to ensure they use best efforts to support federal immigration law enforcement.
The dispute centers on Tampa’s 287(g) agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a federal contract that allows state and local law enforcement to carry out immigration enforcement efforts for ICE. Sheriffs for all of Florida’s 67 counties, as well as many city and university police departments including the University of South Florida, signed the agreement with ICE. Uthmeier argued that Tampa police policies prohibiting officers from engaging in broad-based immigration enforcement actions mean the agency fails the best efforts test required under Florida law.
“The way that it’s being approached right now, I think it has no advantage for anyone - Americans, immigrants, legal or otherwise,” Castor said during a February appearance on Florida Matters Live & Local. The former Tampa police chief criticized ICE’s presence in Minneapolis, saying there were more immigration officers than city police in the city. “That’s an occupation,” she said. “That’s something that we will do everything in my power, and working with the state and the federal government, to avoid even playing a part in something like that.”
“We understand we are a minority majority. The largest minority population are Latinos and Hispanics in our community. They play a very big part in our workforce, and we depend on those individuals. We depend on the collaboration,” Castor said. She described Tampa as a very welcoming and collaborative community when asked about her message to immigrants who make Tampa their home. Castor noted that police officers’ effectiveness comes from community trust, saying if you don’t have that trust among residents and visitors, then the police department is going to be powerless.
“Removal from office is an extraordinary, constitutionally questionable step,” said Alana Greer, an attorney with the Community Justice Project, a legal advocacy group based in Miami. The Florida Constitution allows for suspension of municipal officials for malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, habitual drunkenness, incompetence or permanent inability to perform official duties. Greer pointed out that Florida law gives a clear path to resolve allegations from the state of sanctuary policies through the courts.
“It’s clear here these threats are meant to chill local governments,” said Greer. Gov. Ron DeSantis has ejected two Democrat state attorneys from office in what critics called politically motivated moves. Arturo Rios, an adjunct professor at Stetson University College of Law, said local police departments have a duty to public safety, which is why officers may not focus on immigration enforcement during crime investigations. “Because you’re taking away any sort of safety that a person may feel in reporting crimes,” said Rios.
Uthmeier called for immediate reversal of the policies no later than March 31, warning of consequences including all applicable civil penalties and the mayor’s removal from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis. The attorney general said Florida law requires state and local jurisdictions to use best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law. He argued that federal immigration authorities must be alerted to people who are in the country illegally and perform investigations of their status.