Homeland Security Designation Confuses Town Officials

ORLEANS – The Department of Homeland Security recently included Orleans on a list of sanctuary communities, but town officials earlier this month were quick to correct the record. 

 “Currently, we have not received any formal notification from DHS,” select board chair Kevin Galligan said in a statement posted to the town’s Facebook page on June 1. “In addition, we have not adopted any policy that would identify us as a sanctuary city, and our local law enforcement staff work closely with our federal partners on all matters consistent with the law.”

Sanctuary towns or communities are those that have enacted policies to protect undocumented immigrants in opposition to federal immigration law. Assistant Town Manager Mark Reil said he first heard about the DHS posting on May 30 through social media, where someone posted a link to the list.

“It was brought to our attention on Facebook, on one of the community pages,” he said.

Galligan said that along with the list was a notice from DHS that the listed communities were recognized as “sanctuary jurisdictions,” and that those communities could expect to receive a “notification of non-compliance” with federal immigration laws from the department. 

“It had pulldowns for every state, from Alabama to Wyoming,” Galligan said of the posting. “And under Massachusetts, you found Barnstable, Berkshires and Orleans.”

 But when he went back to the DHS website shortly afterward, Galligan said he found an error message. When the website was back up, the list of communities had been removed, he said.

 The confusion around the listing and the town’s sanctuary status comes as Immigration and Customs Enforcement continues its efforts to identify and detain undocumented immigrants in communities nationwide. In recent weeks, ICE officials have been deployed to Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, Plymouth and Falmouth, sparking mixed reactions from residents both for and against the agency’s efforts.

 According to published reports, the list of communities was removed from the DHS site after the National Sheriffs’ Association pushed back on the department’s failure to vet the listed communities’ sanctuary status.

 But how did Orleans come under Homeland Security’s radar? Galligan said the town’s inclusion could stem from a conversation about the town’s sanctuary status that came up during the public comment portion of a select board meeting from July 2015. A published report from that 2015 meeting also noted that a congressional report from 2005 mistakenly identified the town as having adopted a sanctuary policy.

 “I can say honestly with a straight face that we have not adopted any policies whatsoever,” Galligan said.

 Orleans also was one of several Cape communities that adopted a local resolution to protect residents’ civil liberties in 2003 in the aftermath of the passage of the Patriot Act. 

All this information, which is available online, may have led to DHS identifying Orleans as a sanctuary town, Reil said.

 “Apparently if you ask A.I. what towns in Massachusetts are sanctuary communities, Orleans comes up as one of them,” he said.

 Galligan said that after learning about the DHS posting, he had a conversation with Reil, Town Manager Kim Newman and Police Chief Scott MacDonald. From that conversation, it was decided to post a notice to the town’s website making clear that the town does not have sanctuary status.

 “We’re law-abiding, but I chalk this up more to a mistake.” he said in a followup conversation.

 MacDonald, meanwhile, said things have been quiet in town when it comes to ICE and federal immigration enforcement. And should there be federal activity locally, the role of local police would be minimal at best, he said. In Commonwealth vs. Lund, the state’s Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 2016 that local police do not have the authority to hold anyone on a civil immigration detainer. Only if they otherwise have a warrant for their arrest can police hold them in custody, McDonald said.

 “It’s my opinion that the Cape departments have a clear understanding of what our role is in this, which is extremely limited,” he said.

 Going forward, Galligan said the town will cooperate should there be any further communication with DHS or other federal agencies. 

 “If we ever get a letter, we’ll respond to it,” he said.

A request for comment from DHS was not returned as of this publication.