Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is accusing Tampa\u2019s mayor and police department of \u201cundermining state law\u201d when it comes to immigration enforcement.<\/p>\n
Uthmeier sent a letter to Mayor Jane Castor on Wednesday, saying his office became aware that the Tampa Police Department had \u201csanctuary policies\u201d when it comes to its 287(g) agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.<\/p>\n
He said these policies include restricting immigration enforcement actions and prohibiting officers from sharing certain information with federal immigration authorities.<\/p>\n
Uthmeier said this involved information about victims or witnesses of a crime, including investigating whether they have lawful status and sharing that with federal immigration authorities.<\/p>\n
\u201cTPD ostensibly supports these policies because they do not want illegal aliens to be concerned with immigration consequences by cooperating with law enforcement,\u201d Uthmeier wrote. \u201cBut we want illegal aliens to fear immigration consequences to the extent they are here unlawfully. These sorts of policies that flout our Nation\u2019s immigration laws positively contribute to the mass influx of illegal aliens that Florida has experienced.\u201d<\/p>\n
Uthmeier added that Florida law requires state and local jurisdictions to \u201cuse best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law.\u201d He said that federal immigration authorities must be alerted to people who are in the country illegally and perform investigations of their status.<\/p>\n
He also said Tampa police policies prohibit officers from engaging in \u201cbroad-based\u201d immigration enforcement actions, arguing this means the agency fails the \u201cbest efforts\u201d test.<\/p>\n
Uthmeier called for \u201cimmediate reversal\u201d of the policies no later than March 31. He said if this is not done, there will be consequences. This includes all applicable civil penalties, including the mayor\u2019s removal from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis.<\/p>\n
In response, Castor said the city will review the state\u2019s concerns and \u201cevaluate our policies and procedures to ensure that we use best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTampa is one of the safest cities of our size in the nation because we built trust with our community through collaboration,\u201d Castor said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. \u201cThe 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.\u201d<\/p>\n