One Florida city's mayor and police department is looking toward commissioners to change its immigration policy.
Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe said the city’s policy adopted to comply with federal immigration authorities goes too far, and wants to amend it.
The policy currently requires police officers to write down the names of foreign nationals they come into contact with and turn that information over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Poe said that if those reports include victims’ names, it could have a chilling effect on crime reporting, especially in domestic violence cases where the victims are illegal and could potentially face deportation.
Throughout the state, 17 law enforcement agencies have agreed to deepen ties with ICE.
The city of West Palm Beach sent a memorandum last week to its employees stating they may share information regarding citizenship and immigration status with ICE as part of a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department over its information-sharing policies.
Miami-Dade reversed its “sanctuary city” policy last year, saying the county would honor requests to hold people for extra time so they can be arrested by immigration authorities.