ICE arrests are ticking up in Marion, but no sweeps or raids are envisioned

Federal immigration courts in Florida have experienced some of the largest backlogs of cases in the country, numbering in the hundreds of thousands. That has left many undocumented people in Florida in limbo as they wait for the courts to schedule hearings on their petitions.

While sweeps of migrants and other proactive measures are being reported elsewhere in Florida and across the U.S., there is no evidence of those steps being taken in Marion County.

Any person arrested in Marion County, regardless of which law enforcement agency makes the arrest, is brought to the Marion County jail, which is operated by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. The “Gazette” has been monitoring the number of people arrested and released to the federal Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) in Marion County since Jan. 1 and noticed an increase in the number of immigration detainees has more than doubled from this time last year.

It has been the practice of local law enforcement for years to detain any undocumented individual they arrest while the department contacts federal authorities to confirm immigration status.

Lt. Paul Bloom of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the department continues this practice of screening every person who is arrested “be that for any reason.”

“If it is discovered that they are illegally in the country, ICE may or may not place a detainer on them. We have always complied with ICE detainers and depending on the local charges, the inmate is transferred to ICE within the designated time set out by the federal detainer. We do not have a special unit that goes out specifically to locate illegal aliens. As with all other municipal, state or federal law enforcement agencies, we work with them and assist when specifically requested,” Bloom wrote in an email.

Bloom wrote that in 2024, MCSO held 100 detainees for ICE. This year, there has been an uptick in that number. Bloom wrote, “Jan. 1 to today, 119 persons have been transferred into ICE custody. Currently, we have 38 active detainers.”

Based on MCSO records, the majority of the ICE detainees came from traffic stops from different agencies including MCSO, the Ocala Police Department and the Florida Highway Patrol and not from any ICE raids.

The city of Ocala signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE on April 15 that allowed for a task force of chosen OPD officers to work under the direction of ICE at the city’s cost.

OPD Chief Michael Balken told the “Gazette” that he was eager to enter into the agreement in order “to give officers more authority to capture potential criminals that may be alien, not the single mother who arrived with her child three years ago, still awaiting due process on her asylum request.”

Balken indicated he did not believe the agreement was intended to encourage local authorities to start raiding schools and job sites looking for undocumented immigrants.

OPD has worked closely with federal authorities on other issues, Balken noted, such as internet exploitation of minors and drug trafficking. He said the collaboration has improved security for citizens of Ocala and thinks immigration enforcement could similarly provide more resources to tackle crime.

Under the memorandum, OPD officers chosen for the task force must be U.S. citizens, pass appropriate federal security clearances to DHS and ICE databases, have at least two years of experience in law enforcement, be nominated by their chief, and undergo specific training.

The memorandum further states the officers “must successfully complete mandatory training on relevant administrative, legal, and operational issues tailored to the immigration enforcement functions to be performed as provided by ICE instructors and thereafter pass examinations equivalent to those given to ICE officers. The mandatory training may be made available to the LEA (law enforcement agency) both in-person and online, recorded or virtual-meeting formats, as determined by ICE. Only participating LEA personnel who are nominated, trained, certified, and authorized, as set out herein, have authority pursuant to this MOA to conduct the delegated immigration officer functions, under ICE direction and supervision, enumerated in this MOA.”

Balken expects it will be weeks or months before the two chosen OPD officers attend a 40-hour session at a federal facility. He noted he has not received any training materials mentioned in the MOA.

The MOA says officers will learn more details about the “scope of immigration officer authority, relevant immigration law, the ICE Use of Force Policy, civil rights laws, the detention of aliens, public outreach and complaint procedures, liability issues, cross-cultural issues, and the obligations under federal law, “including applicable treaties or international agreements, to make proper notification upon the arrest of a foreign national.”

The memorandum anticipates the local task force to work under the direction of ICE, at the city’s expense, and to perform specified functions of an immigration officer. It also directs the OPD task force to collect data for their program for ICE.

As to what authority City Manager Pete Lee had to sign the MOA without approval of the Ocala City Council, Balken said the authority is invested in the city manager under resolution #(I’m getting the exact number) that allows the city manager to execute contracts where the fiscal responsibility to the city is less than $50,000. The city made the memorandum public by posting it to the city council’s May 20 meeting agenda as an “informational item.”

Some of the actions anticipated by the task force are outlined in the memorandum as follows:

• The power and authority to interrogate any alien or person believed to be an alien as to his right to be or remain in the United States and to process for immigration violations those individuals who have been arrested for state or federal criminal offenses.
• The power and authority to arrest without a warrant any alien entering or attempting to unlawfully enter the United States in the officer’s presence or view, or any alien in the United States, if the officer has reason to believe the alien to be arrested is in the United States in violation of law and is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained. Subsequent to such arrest, the arresting officer must take the alien without unnecessary delay for examination before an immigration officer having authority to examine aliens as to their right to enter or remain in the United States.
• The power to arrest without warrant for felonies which have been committed and which are cognizable under any law of the United States regulating the admission, exclusion, expulsion, or removal of aliens, if the officer has reason to believe the alien to be arrested is in the United States in violation of law and is likely to escape before a warrant can be obtained.
• The power to serve and execute warrants of arrest for immigration violations under INA §287(a) and 8 C.F.R. § 287.5(e)(3).
• The power and authority to administer oaths and to take and consider evidence, to complete required alien processing to include fingerprinting, photographing, and interviewing, as well as the preparation of affidavits and the taking of sworn statements for ICE supervisory review.
• The power and authority to prepare charging documents including the preparation of the Notice to Appear (NTA) or other charging document, as appropriate, for the signature of an ICE officer for aliens in categories established by ICE supervisors.
• The power and authority to issue immigration detainers (8 C.F.R. § 287.7) and 1-213, Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien, for aliens in categories established by ICE supervisors.
• The power and authority to take and maintain custody of aliens arrested by ICE, or another State or local law enforcement agency on behalf of ICE.
• The power and authority to take and maintain custody of aliens arrested pursuant to the immigration laws and transport such aliens to ICE-approved detention facilities.

Balken told the “Gazette” he was empathetic to the concerns by local residents who have seen massive ICA raids elsewhere. Based on his interactions and assurances from DHS, he feels certain that the task force envisioned in the memorandum will focus on criminals not those who are here legally and are trying to navigate a clogged immigration system.

The “Gazette” has received calls from members of the public that they are reporting potential undocumented aliens to the local authorities. Bloom said any tips that come in regarding immigrants are given to ICE for follow-up. “We are not necessarily responding to a tip on that,” he wrote in an email.