Miami-Dade County jails ready to issue deportation orders to inmates

The jails of Miami-Dade County will soon be able to issue deportation orders to inmates under an agreement supported by Florida state law approved this week.

The Miami-Dade Commission approved a resolution this Tuesday that facilitates greater collaboration between local authorities and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The resolution was approved with nearly unanimous support, except for the vote of Commissioner Marleine Bastien.

This measure strengthens cooperation in the arrest and deportation of immigrants with criminal backgrounds in the county.

Commissioner Roberto J. González, the main proponent of the resolution, defended the initiative by arguing that it aims to ensure safety in the community.

“If someone is arrested and is a criminal, the jails will work together with ICE to ensure that criminals are not on our streets,” he stated, in comments reported by Telemundo 51.

Politics is not new. Since 2017, the county jails have collaborated with ICE, handing over inmates with deportation orders under the administration of then-Mayor Carlos Giménez.

The decision to cooperate with ICE was made at that time due to threats from President Trump to cut funding to jurisdictions that refused to collaborate with the federal government on immigration matters.

Divided reactions to the resolution

The decision has sparked strong reactions within the migrant community and among organizations advocating for immigrants' rights.

Thomas Kennedy, a member of the Florida Coalition of Migrants, criticized the measure, warning about its potential negative effects.

"What this will cause is that the trust between municipal police forces and the community will continue to be damaged," Kennedy noted.

"People who suffer and are victims of crimes will be afraid to report those crimes due to the perception it creates that they will be asked about their immigration status," he added in statements collected by the aforementioned media outlet.

Despite the concerns of the migrant community, Commissioner González insisted that immigrants who have not committed crimes have no reason to fear.

"The immigrant should not feel afraid; what is being done is actually reaffirming that this will continue in the county," he said.

In addition, he justified the collaboration with ICE by arguing that "there is an extensive human trafficking network within the criminal migrant community that needs to be brought under control."

"What we need to stop are the criminals who are entering here and, more than that, we need to stop those who take advantage of immigrants. And the only way we can do that is by enforcing the immigration laws we have," the commissioner added.

Agreement 287(g): A formalization of existing practices

With the new resolution, the county commissioners approved agreement 287(g) with ICE, allowing the assignment of Department of Corrections agents to execute federal deportation orders in local jails.

It is unclear whether this will increase the number of deportations among those detained in the Miami-Dade correctional system, as the county has been cooperating with ICE since 2017, handing over inmates with deportation orders.

However, the new agreement allows local authorities to issue these orders directly without needing to wait for the in-person intervention of federal immigration agents.

The mandate to establish the 287(g) agreements in local jails was approved by the Florida Legislature in 2022.

Miami-Dade requested the partnership with ICE during President Joe Biden's administration, according to documentation from the Department of Corrections.

Debate on the costs and rights of immigrants

The county mayor, Daniella Levine Cava, assured during Tuesday's meeting that "the law has been approved" and that her administration is simply complying with it.

However, Commissioner Marleine Bastien expressed her opposition to the measure and criticized the administration for being unable to determine how much the implementation of the agreement will cost taxpayers.

"This forces the county to hold people who have already served their sentences for a longer time," Bastien noted.

“Immigrants can be detained because they were unable to pay their traffic fines. They can be detained for not paying child support. But since they are immigrants, we are going to sign the [agreement] to keep them in prison,” he added.

The measure continues to generate divided reactions in the community, and its impact on the safety and rights of immigrants in Miami-Dade will remain a topic of debate in the coming months.

Frequently Asked Questions about Deportations in Miami-Dade County