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This Community News Service story was originally published in December, 2023. June 3, 2024 the ACLU of Vermont filed suit against Essex County Sheriff Trevor Colby for failure to produce public records as the legal group pursued Colby’s alleged violation of the State of Vermont ‘fair and impartial policing policy’ policy, especially his cooperation with federal immigration officials.
The Essex County border with Canada is part of the Swanton Sector (covering upstate NY, Vermont and NH), the section of U.S. border with the highest rate of increased illegal crossings in the nation.
Said ACLU legal director Lia Ernst on June 4: “Vermont’s Public Records Act ensures access to public information, a foundation of transparent and accountable government. Sheriff Colby’s refusal to comply with that law is deeply troubling, particularly since the records concern his office’s compliance with the state’s Fair and Impartial Policing Policy (FIPP). Local law enforcement should not be in the business of enforcing federal immigration law, and Vermont sheriffs need to be held accountable.” – VDC Editor
by Charlotte Oliver, Community News Service
The first two years Rossy Alfaro lived in the U.S. she almost never left the dairy farm where she worked. She feared a familiar encounter, that if she ever headed to the grocery store she’d see red and blue lights in her rearview and suddenly find her future hinging on the discretion of an officer she didn’t trust.
That hypothetical cop would’ve been protected by the law in calling federal immigration agents — something migrant workers around the state fear could lead to their detention or deportation, Alfaro said.
“It was one of the saddest times in my life,” said Alfaro, an organizer for activist group Migrant Justice who came to the States about five years ago, speaking through a translator.
Late last month police policymakers greenlit what migrant rights activists consider a victory in their goal of preventing routine interactions with law enforcement from turning into deportation.
A committee of the council that regulates police training on Nov. 20 approved changes to state policies that would bar police from sharing information about people in Vermont with federal immigration agents, except in specific felony cases.
The proposal needs to be approved by the full Vermont Criminal Justice Council, which is expected to discuss the measure Dec. 19. But vocal support from migrant rights activists, and precedent in Vermont for the change, is competing with concerns about the legality of the committee’s policy change and, from law enforcement, wariness about restrictions on their jobs.
“A policy like that is beyond frustrating,” said Essex County Sheriff Trevor Colby, who works in the most rural part of the state along the state’s border with Canada. He doesn’t want to see the proposed changes put into effect because he thinks they would make it harder for law enforcement officers to perform their duties.
For activists like Alfaro, the risks of keeping law enforcement and immigration communications unregulated are too great. “If people were really to put themselves in our shoes and understand the realities that we’re dealing with, then we would see faster action on this issue,” she said, expressing frustration that the first step in shifting the policy came only after years of activism and change isn’t guaranteed.
The council committee originally voted to approve the set of policies in a Nov. 7 meeting, but confusion over the particulars pushed the officials to set a revote. Activists considered the disputed language — regarding police sharing information about citizenship status — the most important part of the proposal.
In their deliberations committee members were choosing between two pairs of policies: one endorsed by Migrant Justice, the other by the Vermont attorney general’s office. The former sought further restrictions on police and barred sharing citizenship information. The latter was more tempered and, in the eyes of attorneys for the state, would have avoided putting Vermont in conflict with federal law — and its own.
In both the initial Nov. 7 vote and the Nov. 20 revote, the committee approved the policies endorsed by Migrant Justice. Committee members representing law enforcement largely opposed the approved measure — just like Colby, the sheriff in Essex County.
“We don’t need further restrictions on what we’re already doing,” he said. He characterized the policy as something designed to “trip up” law enforcement officers who typically aren’t focused on immigration.
“It’s not like we’re spending all this energy focusing on people that are here illegally,” said Colby, estimating his department had relayed about 20 cases to immigration authorities in the last year, not a particularly high figure in his mind.
The Community News Service repeatedly reached out to eight sheriff’s departments and seven municipal police departments over the course of two weeks, all of which either declined to comment or did not answer, other than Colby’s. Micheal O’Neil, executive director of the Vermont Troopers Association, also declined to comment.
Alfaro said in her community she hears many stories about police unnecessarily contacting immigration authorities, making undocumented people feel like the police wouldn’t support them if they needed their protection. Enrique Balcazar, another organizer for Migrant Justice, told the Community News Service last month about an incident involving the Grand Isle County Sheriff’s Department in which he thought immigration agents were unnecessarily involved. (The department did not answer repeated requests for comment.)
In some cases, said Colby, jurisdiction isn’t clear cut. He told a story to illustrate the point:
This month, someone who lived about 200 feet from the border with Canada found a strange vehicle in their driveway and called the police, Colby said. Colby said the only reason he didn’t call immigration authorities in that case was because the caller couldn’t give the plate numbers and no deputy could respond at the time.
He emphasized that his priority is to keep residents within his jurisdiction safe, and people in his relatively remote part of the state get shaken up when they see unfamiliar folks. Up there, he said, everyone basically knows everyone.
Colby said he would likely call immigration authorities after a traffic stop if he thought the people in the car were undocumented. He seemed concerned that the proposed policy could limit his ability to prevent drug trafficking and other crimes. “I mean, not everybody who comes into this country is doing that. But what about the ones that are?” he asked.
Despite the push for the policy change coming from activists in Vermont, Colby said he felt like the policies reflect national agendas, rather than the local issues he encounters. He said the policy reflects a lack of understanding of how police function.
The Vermont attorney general’s office in the Nov. 7 police policy committee meeting indicated it couldn’t endorse the policies because they directly contradict federal law. Speaking at that meeting, Assistant Attorney General Erin Jacobsen cited federal restrictions that say local police can’t be prohibited from sharing citizenship information with federal agents. She also added that, according to Vermont statute, any laws in conflict with those federal laws are nullified.
The office’s stance made sense to Jessica Brown, the director of Vermont Law and Graduate School’s Center for Justice Reform. “I’m not surprised that the attorney general’s office is taking the position that they’re taking,” Brown said, agreeing the contradiction with federal law was pretty clear.
But she noted an apparent contradiction: “I’m curious why the attorney general’s office, for example, is worried about this statute conflicting with federal law and not about … drug laws conflicting with federal law.”
Colby said he hoped the policy wouldn’t be passed by the council at large. Alfaro said its passage can’t come quick enough.
“We hope that the Criminal Justice Council will act quickly to accept those recommendations, strengthen the policy, so that we can live free lives as human beings and enjoy the rights and liberties that we deserve,” said Alfaro.
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Categories: Border
Illegal immigrants have no constitutional rights. Social Justice is not a civil or constitutional right. The only right illegal immigrants have is to be deported.
Exactly.
This is not true. Everyone has first, fourth, fifth sixth and 14th amendment rights regardless of citizenship.
Rights are universal. They don’t come from the government, and they don’t come from the constitution. Rights are something you are born with.
Anyone here has Constitutional rights. That is part of the Constitution. What they don’t have is the right to violate Law.
Unfreakin believable ! How many ways must we hamstring law enforcement before lawfull citizens say enough ! I don’t much care whether it’s the Feds communicating with state, and local police, or what it is, if we hinder the sharing of information we are part of the problem . Don’t blame the police when illegals, who are repeat felons, continue their life of crime, blame groups like the ACLU, and their anti-American mouthpieces for the decline in society. Who is funding the AMERICAN Civil Liberties Union anyways ? I’ve got a feeling they are not Americans !
You are correct. The ACLU serves the United Nations in enforcing the rights of global citizens as understood by the United Nations Council on Human Rights, not the citizens of a specific country, subject to the laws of that country.
https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/united-nations-human-rights-body-holds-united-states-accountable-for-violations-of-civil-and-political-rights-treaty
Have you seen this documentary? https://www.theepochtimes.com/epochtv/weapons-of-mass-migration-5640408?utm_source=ref_share&utm_campaign=copy
Christine Stone, I would love to spend more time dissecting the link you shared: God given rights vs. constitutional rights. Two points pop out at me: the Hebrew word is “murder” not “kill” and includes slanderous and murderous thoughts and speech. Eminent Domain – Ah! Who has eminent domain? God Himself! To whom did He give dominion, and by whom were we deceived and forfeited our dominion? There are some misinterpretations of scripture in the author’s argument, too much to get into here. Dr. Michael S. Heiser, in his book The Bible Unfiltered, Chapter 9, “Marxism and Biblical Theology Aren’t Synonymous,” makes a great biblical argument for free market enterprise, where others “conflate the gospel with socioeconomic concerns,” according to Heiser. We will always have the poor with us. God is displeased when the poor are oppressed by the wealthy, which is what we are experiencing now in VT. The call to care for the poor is to individuals, not the State. The Declaration of Independence proclaims unalienable rights given by our Creator. For example, First Amendment – ultimately one cannot control another’s thoughts – one can manipulate, control, coerce, bully, etc., which is our persecution in the U.S. I think our U.S. Constitution backs up our God-given rights, including the right to defend ourselves. In Jesus’ time, it was the sword. Today, it is guns. The Word of God is the most mighty of weapons, slaying false narratives. Truth always prevails.
Illegal migration could be solved quickly if employers were fined so heavily that it threatened the viability of their businesses. Instead we play cat and mouse with the migrants and do nothing to reduce incentives to import illegal labor.
Of course neither party will propose that fix.
VtRocks: I believe most of the employers are farmers. So, you can “…fine them so heavily that it threatens the viability of their business…” or, you can deport all those illegal immigrants and threaten the viability of their business. Either way, their going out of business. Being a hired hand on a farm isn’t easy or glamorous. One will have to work at least six days a week, while the farmers are working seven. I don’t see anyone standing in line to apply for these jobs. Yes, it’s against the law but, unless you and others want to see more VT farms go down the tubes, what is the alternative?
After 9-11, law enforcement agencies were supposed to work more closely together. What if a law enforcement officer encountered an illegal alien, didn’t report the illegal, then that illegal murdered or injured someone else? At one time, VT and Immigration had a policy of working together. For example, if customs/immigration encountered a DUI suspect at the port, they could detain the person until police arrived. Law enforcement only works when they work together.
VermontVermonter, you believe you have the right to do whatevertheheck you want?
What law stands in the way of that for you, if any? Tell us. I mean, you have the right to murder anyone. Am I correct? Or what laws prevent you from that? Wow. Talk about idiocy. You have zero friggen clarity of any laws.
RGB: This is not what VermonterVermonter is implying, as most religions prohibit killing people, such as The Ten Commandments, “Thou shall not kill.” Here is an article that discuss the argument about rights being granted via the Constitution or by God.
https://www.thejourneyonline.com/2015/07/you-have-no-right-constitutional-rights-vs-god-given-rights/
This documentary is a total MUST SEE https://www.theepochtimes.com/epochtv/weapons-of-mass-migration-5640408?utm_source=ref_share&utm_campaign=copy
Yes, I have seen this documentary and others that prove without a doubt that the United Nations is the entity facilitating and funding the boarder invasion, using US tax dollars. The reason why they are doing this is complex and multi pronged. It includes migration being the solution to aging and declining populations, increasing global equity, reducing birth rates as women with increased opportunity and income have less children (population control), climate change, refugee status and so on.
Kudos to the Sheriff. Vermont’s obsessive need to cater to persons illegally here instead of serving its own citizens and the nation shows the depths to which woke justice has sunk. It’s ok to do weed, a federal crime, but it’s perfectly ok to protect illegal aliens from the law
Illegal Alien, means “Illegal Alien”. Breaking the law of the United States Constitution and each State is a crime by the ones physically being here as Illegal Aliens and the ones trafficking/paying for the crime of the illegal alien invasion. All are complicit, all are criminals. Deport and convict.
Chris Oersted “This is not true. Everyone has first, fourth, fifth sixth and 14th amendment rights regardless of citizenship.”
The Constitution was to define and establish America. Show me where it also includes all beings in the world that came here and “established rights” without due process being covered under the Constitution umbrella. Illegals are illegals. Legals are welcome, illegals not. I have the Constitution. For instance the 1st amendment relates to free speech, not sanctuary. Don’t BS.
Some constitutional rights apply to all in the US, some to only citizens.
Have you read the preamble of the constitution ? It reads as such:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
It does not talk about “citizens” being equal.
I’ve lived in tyrannies as a kid of a diplomat. I prefer places with universal rights.
In other words, the ACLU is defending and supporting human trafficking, drug trafficking, and turning a blind eye to crimes against humanity. When NGOs and non-profiteers are as immoral and unethical as the cartel they serve, the People must call out their co-conspirator, colluding conduct. Aiding and abetting the enemy is treason. Consider the ACLU cancelled and call out the depravity of being complicit to criminal conduct and conspiracy to commit fraud and treason.
And Catholic Charities and Lutheran Immigration & Refugee Services supports defying Fed Law as well as supporting human trafficking, drug trafficking, and all related crimes as well. According to recent data – human trafficking by cartels is surpassing the profits of illegal drug trafficking. Your U.S. government condones it, as does the state of VT as it openly professes that it is a sanctuary state (a term with no legally enforceable definition) to these illegal activities.
Sheriff Colby and all other Sherriffs, keep up the good work…don’t give up. We’re with you.
Interesting, the ACLU promotes illegals. They have ads wanting you to donate to them so they can continue on their crusade to destroy America.