Counties Say It's Too Costly To Hold Prisoners For ICE
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- It's going to take an order from a judge for county jails to hold prisoners requested to be detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Hennepin County officials made the announcement on Wednesday. Ramsey County officials also say the county will no long participate in holding inmates after serving their time.
In the past, ICE had asked for a 48 hour hold to determine if the prisoner would be deported.
But recent court decisions have made that discretionary.
"This is one of those unreimbursed expenses to the residents of Hennepin County," Sheriff Rich Stanek said. "It has cost us upwards of $170,000 since 2012 in this ICE detainees, so it's an unfunded mandate back onto county government."
A Twin Cities ICE spokesperson says the agency will work with law enforcement to remove criminals "who are public safety threats."