Feds target Oregon counties over noncompliance with ICE subpoenas

PORTLAND, Ore. (CN) — The federal government on Wednesday asked a judge to force four Portland-area counties to hand over information on 10 immigrants — including three lawful permanent residents — who were convicted of violent crimes.

In a petition, the federal government claims that Multnomah, Clackamas, Marion and Washington county corrections officials and departments have refused to comply with 10 administrative subpoenas issued by Homeland Security Investigations in July.

“The subpoenas seek information that would allow petitioner to locate these dangerous, criminal aliens who are subject to removal from the United States pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act,” the government wrote.

According to the government, Multnomah County officials stated that they were declining the request due to the state’s sanctuary laws. Officials in Clackamas and Washington Counties said they could only respond to court-ordered subpoenas. Marion County officials didn’t comply with the subpoenas but sought clarification from the court about how to proceed.

In 1987, Oregon became the first sanctuary state in the country, prohibiting local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The state’s sanctuary policies were strengthened in 2021 through the Oregon House Bill 3265, also known as the Sanctuary Promise Act, which bans private immigration detention centers and bars state and local law enforcement from participating in immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant.

According to the government, Oregon prisons haven’t complied with requests to turn over immigrants convicted of crimes to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the end of their sentences since 2021.

“Rather than allowing federal officials to investigate prisoners to ascertain whether they are citizens of the United States and potentially subject to removal and detention, Oregon has ignored all federal requests for information or access to prisoners for interviews since passage of Oregon House Bill 3265,” the government wrote.

The federal government accused the counties of ignoring ICE-issued detainers and releasing 10 criminal offenders who may be subject to removal back into the community between 2022 and 2023. The administrative subpoenas targeted people convicted of rape, child sexual abuse, manslaughter, assault and kidnapping, according to the government.

“Removing violent criminal aliens from our local communities and country is a matter of public safety and a top priority for federal law enforcement,” Scott E. Bradford, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, said in a statement.

Clackamas, Washington and Multnomah Counties declined to comment on the pending litigation. Marion County Counsel Steve Elzinga said the county is looking forward to a court decision, as it already filed a lawsuit weeks ago seeking clarification on the issue.

Homeland Security Investigation agents were tasked with tracking down the people earlier this year through surveillance at their last known addresses, but were unsuccessful. The agents next compiled target profiles for each one and checked for any possible recent arrests, according to the federal government.

Based on the information they surfaced, the agents determined each one is likely subject to removal due to their manner of entry into the country or their criminal convictions, and that each one is subject to ICE detention pending their removal, according to the federal government.

Each subpoena requested information about their last known whereabouts and documents relating to their criminal charges.