The Democrat-controlled Bucks County Commission on Wednesday adopted a resolution designed to block the GOP sheriff from cooperating with federal immigration officials in apprehending criminal aliens.
Bucks County Sheriff Fred Harran recently announced his department is entering an agreement with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) to cooperate with enforcement actions under its 287(g) program. Hundreds of local law enforcement agencies have done the same across the country.
Bucks County Democrats, however, reacted with anger to Harran’s decision. Commission Chair Bob Harvie Jr. publicly linked Harran’s actions to the rise of fascism in 1930s Germany.
Now, Harvie and fellow Democrat Vice Chair Diane Ellis-Marseglia have passed a resolution declaring the commissioners are “vested with the corporate power of the County of Bucks as the sole contracting authority.” Therefore, Harran cannot enter into the agreement with ICE.
Republican Commissioner Gene DiGirolamo voted against it.
County Solicitor Amy Fitzpatrick, a Democratic candidate for county court, said the resolution is needed in the face of legal challenges to Harran’s actions from outside groups.
“This resolution is in reaction to the County of Bucks being threatened with legal action due to an attempt to contract with ICE,” Fitzpatrick said. The ACLU had threatened to sue the county and sheriff over the ICE agreement.
She also rejected the premise that an agreement with ICE is needed.
“The County of Bucks follows all state and federal laws,” she said. “And cooperates with all federal agencies, including providing access to the Department of Corrections. This resolution reaffirms that the County of Bucks is not a sanctuary county.”
DiGirolamo defended Harran, telling the meeting he’s watched Harran’s law enforcement career for 25 years, first in Bensalem, then as the Bucks County sheriff. DiGirolamo discussed programs that Harran has started to help people with drug and alcohol addiction and mental illness.
“When it comes to public safety and law enforcement, I could go on and on about Fred. I trust Fred,” DiGiralomo said.
“You’re full of s**t!” a woman in the audience shouted in response.
DiGiralomo continued, “I trust Fred. I’ve watched him for 30-some years work in law enforcement. I’ve watched him put violent criminals away. I think what he’s doing is about violent criminals. It’s not about going into homes, pulling people out of homes, and arresting them and taking people away. It’s about keeping our community safe.”
Harvie thanked the county law department for working on the resolution. He pointed out that if lawsuits ensue, “we will foot the bill.”
The commissioners also warned other county employees, such as deputy sheriffs, that they would lose their qualified immunity and the county would not offer legal protections if they worked with ICE.
During public comment many people complained about the sheriff partnering with ICE, some repeating the comparisons to Nazi Germany and the Holocaust made in a previous public hearing. Harran, who is Jewish, says he finds the comparisons particularly offensive.
Harran explained to DV Journal that the program is only to help ICE deport illegal aliens who have committed crimes to make the community safer.
“I’m only interested in those folks that have warrants for their arrest (and who) have committed criminal activity in Bucks County. And I’m using immigration as just one small tool in the box of tools that we use in law enforcement,” Harran told DV Journal during the podcast.
While the commissioners might have avoided litigation with the ACLU by passing the resolution, they have picked a legal fight with Harran.
Because of the pending litigation, Harran could not speak about the situation at the commissioners’ meeting or afterward, referring reporters to his lawyer, Wally Zimolong.
Zimolong said the commissioner’s resolution was “legally baseless.”
“This is a matter of federal law, not state law, and under federal law, the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office is a political subdivision. As such, Sheriff Harran had full authority under federal law to execute the 287(g) agreement with ICE. The Bucks County Commissioners and their lawyers have a history of pursuing baseless legal theories that are willfully ignorant of well-settled legal precedent in furtherance of their partisan agenda,” Zimolong said.
“We are more than confident that if Sheriff Harran’s agreement is challenged, his actions will be affirmed.”
Zimolong also accused the Democrats of advancing pro-sanctuary policies.
“While the resolution says that Bucks County is not a sanctuary county, make no mistake – the Democrat commissioners, Bob Harvie and Diane Marseglia, are sanctuary commissioners who have made Bucks County a sanctuary county.”
