Two residents asked Berks County officials on Thursday to reconsider a policy that was amended last year to increase the amount of time the county will detain someone based on a request from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The Berks County Prison Board voted unanimously in April to increase the amount of time it would hold someone at the county jail who is accused by ICE of being illegally in the U.S. to 24 hours from four hours, with the possibility of detainment up to 48 hours under extenuating circumstances.

Faced with the possibility of losing more than a quarter of a million dollars in annual federal funding, officials said the move was an attempt to balance compliance with detention requests and the rights of those being detained.

The issue arose when District Attorney John T. Adams, a member of the prison board, said he received information that the county was in jeopardy of losing about $290,000 a year in federal emergency management funding if it did not comply with President Donald Trump’s priorities on immigration enforcement.

Adams recommended the county change its policy to avoid any funding loss.

Crystal Kowalski, a longtime activist who lives in Wyomissing, requested during the board of commissioners weekly meeting Thursday that they reconsider the policy change.

“Given the practices ICE has employed in the nine months that have followed the decision to fully comply with ICE detention retainers, I’m asking the jail board to discontinue holding people beyond their legal release date and time,” she said.

Kowalski said the board should return to its initial policy to hold individuals for a maximum of four hours only if the county is legally required to do so.

“ICE is not adhering to the rule of law or the U.S. Constitution,” she said. “It’s time to rethink our cooperation with ICE.”

Liability issue

Kowalski also referenced potential legal liability under the policy, which county Solicitor Christine Sadler brought up during discussions last year.

At a February meeting of the prison board, Sadler noted a 2010 case in Lehigh County that created concern about complying with the request from federal officials.

Lehigh was sued by a New Jersey-born man of Puerto Rican descent who was arrested in a drug raid on the jobsite where he was working.

Despite telling county jail staff that he was an American citizen, Ernesto Galarza, who was not charged as a result of the drug raid, was held for a weekend under an immigration detainer issued by ICE.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania sued the county on Galarza’s behalf and won a decision from the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that local agencies may share liability if they participate in wrongfully issued detainers by ICE. He settled his claim against Lehigh for $95,000.

Sadler said that case caused her to worry about facing possible legal challenges. But at the following meeting the solicitor said she felt better about the situation after county officials met with ICE representatives and learned that new procedures had been added to the process before the agency issues a detainer.

Previously, she said, field agents were allowed to lodge detainers without supervisor oversight. ICE has implemented a process in which a detainer request has to be reviewed and confirmed by a supervisor before it is officially lodged.

Sadler added that she believes those who work in the county jail are capable of performing their due diligence to ensure the immigration status of inmates is correctly flagged.

Fearful for friends

Annette Garber, a writer and educator from Sinking Spring, also expressed concerns about the policy change.

“After witnessing the recent reports and videos of violence in Minneapolis among our immigrant neighbors, I’m coming to express my concern for our neighbors here in Berks County,” she said.

Garber said that through her work at Reading Area Community College she has made many friends who are living in fear and uncertainty.

“Their stories and faces are very close to my heart,” she said. “I think of Maria from Haiti who cares for her children and her niece here because it’s unsafe to do so back in her home country. And I think of my friend Lily from Mexico who is building a better life for her family here because there was no economic opportunity where she grew up.”

Garber said that as she understands the policy, ICE can issue detainers without providing proof or due process regarding immigration status.

“ICE is operating unchecked and is not following basic law enforcement rules of engagement, causing harm and stoking panic in our cities,” she said. “So, as a woman of faith, I’m very concerned that we would potentially turn over any of our detainees to this agency to fill their detention centers, their quotas and their pockets with corrupt money — especially if these immigrant detainees lack a true danger to our county.”

Cases of criminally charged

Commissioners Chairman Christian Leinbach said that while the policy was changed to allow more time for ICE agents to pick up individuals they suspect of being in the country illegally, the practice of alerting the agency is nothing new.

“When someone is arrested they are brought to this building for central booking, so we are talking about criminally charged individuals,” he said. “We’re not talking about people being picked up from their home or school — we’re talking only about criminally charged individuals.

Leinbach said that when individuals are brought into booking their immigration status is checked. If they are found to be here illegally ICE is notified. They then go before a judge who determines whether they will go to jail or be let out on bail. If they go to jail, their status status is again checked when they are booked. If the jail confirms that status ICE again is notified.

“A detainer doesn’t happen automatically,” he said. “The detainer only comes into play when either the local charges are dropped or the individual is going to be released pending a hearing. And it’s 48 hours.

“I do not have any problem with the 48-hour ICE detainer, and again we are only talking about people who are criminally charged.”

Leinbach further clarified that the detainer policy is in no way connected to participation in the 287(g) program, a partnership with ICE that allows county and local law enforcement to voluntarily be deputized to perform immigration enforcement.

“We’re not involved in the 287 program that some counties across the country are,” he said. “That’s a totally different ballgame. The last time it was discussed here was with the prior sheriff back in 2017. No action was taken and there has been zero discussion about that since then.”

Misinformation warning

Leinbach cautioned residents to be mindful of misinformation on social media related to local ICE raids.

“Just yesterday (Wednesday) evening (Reading) Mayor (Eddie) Moran was forced to put out a press release because locally some organization or individual posted a video of Berks County sheriffs supposedly aiding ICE in a raid,” he said. “And that is not what was happening. It was a normal warrant that was being served and had nothing to do with ICE.”

Leinbach reiterated that the sheriff’s department does not have any agreement with ICE.