Eighteen years ago, a 35-year-old Alachua County resident moved to Gainesville from Honduras hoping to secure a better future for herself and her family.
She stayed in an abusive relationship with her partner of 10 years out of fear that if she reported the abuse, her undocumented status would be shared with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
She said today she still lives in that fear.
“Right now, I’m scared of my son being alone,” she said at Thursday’s Gainesville City Commission meeting. “It breaks my heart that my only kid can be sent to an orphanage.”
The woman, whom The Alligator granted anonymity to because of her immigration status, was one of several concerned Gainesville residents who spoke about changes to the Gainesville Police’s immigration policy Thursday.
New changes to the GPD general order, a measure that outlines law enforcement procedures, were carefully discussed in Thursday’s meeting. The most significant change involved the department’s cooperation with ICE, said Terry Pierce, the assistant chief of GPD.
One of several changes to the order states that GPD should only assist ICE when there is a task force or joint criminal investigation involved. Previously, the order allowed exceptions for cooperation with ICE on a case-to-case basis.
The revised order also states that officers “should refrain” from asking victims and witnesses about their nationality and provide services regardless of citizenship.
However, in March 2019, a domestic dispute sparked controversy after GPD shared details about an individuals’ immigration status with ICE.
The agenda item at Thursday’s meeting was set to inform the commission about the changes, Mayor Lauren Poe said. Commissioners have no authority over GPD’s order, but the city manager does, he said.
After consulting with the city attorney, City Manager Lee Feldman said because of current federal statutes, it would be unlawful for GPD to include a statement in the order about limiting information to ICE.
Feldman said that while he’s sympathetic toward the plight of undocumented immigrants, Gainesville is limited by federal laws.
Gainesville was a sanctuary city until Florida banned its sanctuary cities in October 2019. But now, local governments and police departments are required by law to cooperate with ICE.
The majority of GPD union members aren’t opposed to any changes to the immigration policy, said Sheldon McKinzie, president of GPD’s union, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 67.
“These changes are really kind of nonconsequential — not really a big deal,” McKinzie said.
In McKinzie’s view, it doesn’t matter who is an undocumented immigrant and who is a natural-born citizen when breaking the law.
Liz Ibarrola, the director of immigration concerns at the Human Rights Coalition of Alachua County, wants GPD to proactively withhold the names of victims and witnesses from ICE when reporting on crimes.
Under Florida law, local police departments are required to hold undocumented immigrants who have been detained for an additional 48 hours until ICE sends them to a detention center. Those imprisoned are also detained after serving their sentence or posting bond.
Victims and witnesses in Gainesville should feel safe reporting crimes, and GPD should carefully cooperate during operations with ICE to minimize the risk of outing their immigration status, Ibarrola said.
The Human Rights Coalition and its supporters wore white, a color commonly worn for immigration protests, to the meeting. They made public comments and encouraged city commissioners to consider their suggestions.
“Gainesville has a title of being a welcoming city, but we want to make sure the policy in our city supports that,” Ibarrola said.
Contact Grethel Aguila at gaguila@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @GrethelAguila.
