Hello PEACE Team Members!
Because of the hard work you all put into turning out 2,600 people this past March, undocumented immigrants in Palm Beach County need no longer live in fear of 2 things:
1) Being arrested for driving without a license, if they can present a consular ID. The Sheriff’s Office will accept the consular ID as valid identification. The driver without the license will receive a citation, but will not be taken to jail.
2) Being detained / deported by ICE simply because they were driving without a license, in the absence of additional judicial authority.
In short – the meaning this has to a LOT of people’s lives in Palm Beach County is huge. And it is all because of YOU, PEACE, and some very hard work this past Spring.
See two articles: one on the WPTV website, and one from the Palm Beach Post
All media coverage will be posted on the PEACE Facebook page.
The Press Release from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office is below.
July 22, 2014
For Immediate Release MA14-96
Contact: Media Relations 688-3080
MEDIA ADVISORY
Effective immediately, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office will no longer detain individuals with questionable immigration status based only on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) detainers absent additional judicial authority. An I.C.E. detainer is a request for a local jail to hold individuals up to 48 hours after the local charges have been resolved; it’s an agency request only.
Historically, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) detainers were viewed as “Mandatory”, requiring jails to honor them. However, recent directives by I.C.E. describe detainers as discretionary and there have been recent Federal Court decisions articulating the same. Therefore, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office will no longer honor the detainers absent judicial authority. PBSO will require Orders of Deportation or Warrants signed by a federal judge/magistrate, or other court related orders, to hold individuals beyond the time they would otherwise be released.
This decision comes after a long, thoughtful, and deliberate process that included meetings with the community activists group P.E.A.C.E and discussions with various legal counsels and I.C.E. Officials.
This decision in no way will affect the Sheriff’s Office commitment to securing our borders from the influx of illegal immigrants attempting to enter the U.S. illegally or the Human Trafficking associated with it.