Illegal immigration debate erupts over TPD’s role in ICE cooperation agreement

The Tallahassee Police Department has agreed to join the statewide crackdown on illegal immigration, which ignited a testy email conversation between the city manager and a city commissioner.

Larry Keefe, a former U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Florida who is now serving as head of the new State Board of Immigration Enforcement, on Tuesday announced that the board created an accountability dashboard to ensure local law enforcement is in compliance with Florida's newest immigration laws.

“This reporting system will provide a direct channel for officers and employees to report any failure by their agency to comply with Florida’s immigration enforcement policies,” Keefe said in a statement. “Let there be no misunderstanding – Florida law will be enforced."

On March 4, TPD signed a memorandum of agreement, a written document outlining a cooperative relationship between two or more parties, detailing its commitment to helping Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) round up illegal immigrants.

The memorandum allows for select officers to carry out functions of an immigration officer such as the power to interrogate "any alien or person believed to be an alien," and "arrest without a warrant any alien entering or attempting to unlawfully enter the United States," according to the document.

Any law enforcement officer not using "their best efforts to support the enforcement of federal immigration law is in violation of Florida statute and is subject to penalties and judicial proceedings by the Attorney General, or removal from office by the Governor," the State Board of Immigration Enforcement's news release says.

City Manager Reese Goad defended the city's decision to City Commissioner Jack Porter on this basis. But Porter said it's her responsibility to understand what is legally required of the city and isn't clear whether this action is. She told the Democrat that in her conversations with the city attorney, the attorney didn't agree that TPD was legally required to enter into the agreement.

"If you and the City Attorney are not in agreement, then maybe the issue isn’t so clear," Porter wrote in an email thread Goad provided to the Tallahassee Democrat. "Even the police chief of Coral Gables – who has entered into the same agreement – stated on record that it was not legally required of them."

"I don’t understand your point," Goad replied. "You seem to say that if someone thinks it is not legally required then it shouldn’t be done. There are a lot of legal opinions. I wish to avoid that kind of overthink and legal debate."

Goad further explained that the decision to comply is up to him and TPD Chief Lawrence Revell: "You are welcome to indicate that we shouldn’t do it, and take whatever action you deem appropriate," he wrote.

Porter pressed Goad to share where he got his legal opinion "since it did not come from the City Attorney and since you are not an attorney."

She went on: "If the answer is that you came to the conclusion on your own from reading the order, then that’s your answer. I’m not an attorney either, which is why I consult with attorneys."

"Based on all of the context here, I assume you believe we reached the wrong conclusion and should not execute the agreement," Goad replied. "Therefore, your opinion must be that the City is not legally required to do so and is not subject to any penalty for failure to act. However, you are reluctant to state your position."

Porter told the Democrat in a text that it is her "elected job to carefully consider and understand the allocation of scarce local resources as well as our legal obligations."

"Every Tallahassee resident should be concerned that an unelected city manager is making legal decisions without consulting our city attorney and refusing to answer basic questions about his decision-making process," she wrote.

While Goad didn't consult the city attorney, he noted Revell sought advice from the department's legal counsel, which works for the city attorney's office. He also noted that sheriff's offices across the state and more than a hundred police departments have signed similar agreements.

Revell said statutes have mandated that law enforcement officers comply or face a penalty for not putting forth their best efforts. After numerous discussions, Revell said he determined it was the right course of action to sign the memorandum.

At the end of February, the state said all its counties are to enter what's known as a 287(g) task force model agreement and a warrant service officer program. This is the type of agreement TPD signed.

The agreement allows local law enforcement to enforce immigration violations as part of their routine duties and allows ICE to train, certify and authorize local law enforcement to serve and execute administrative warrants in their jails.

Mandating local law enforcement to participate is the latest effort to support President Donald Trump and his mandate for mass deportations to address illegal immigration after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an anti-immigration bill into law last month.

Local government watchdog reporter Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X: @elenabarreraaa.