Iowa’s Republican Governor, Kim Reynolds, rebuked Winneshiek County Sheriff Dan Marx for violating state law by refusing to assist Immigration enforcement.
Marx posted a statement on Tuesday claiming that he will not cooperate with ICE and other federal officials seeking to take illegal migrants into custody.
Marx insisted that he won’t help ICE if their actions “are not within constitutional parameters.”
Marx wrote in part in a Facebook post:
If the fed’s actions and paperwork are within constitutional parameters (such as proper and valid judicial warrants/court orders) we will assist if needed or requested to ensure their actions are carried out professionally and in the least intrusive fashion possible. If their actions or paperwork are not within constitutional parameters (such as non-judicially vetted ‘detainers,’ which are very different than warrants and are simply an unconstitutional “request” from ICE or other three letter federal agency to arrest or hold someone), then we will make every effort to block, interfere and interrupt their actions from moving forward.
Gov. Reynolds, though, is not letting Marx flout federal authority and warned him against adopting policies that would interfere with ICE:
Iowa law provides a sheriff shall not adopt or enforce a policy or take any other action under which the sheriff prohibits or discourages the enforcement of immigration laws. Iowa law further requires that a sheriff shall not prohibit or discourage a law enforcement officer from assisting or cooperating with a federal immigration officer as reasonable or necessary, including providing enforcement assistance.
The governor also noted that Marx’s funding could be at risk, and added, “A sheriff and county can become ineligible to receive any state funds” if they intentionally violate state law.
Reynolds specifically pointed to Iowa Code Chapter 27, which details the duties of law enforcement where it concerns cooperation with federal immigration officials.
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