SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Amador County Sheriff Gary Redman said public safety is his priority, which is why he’s willing to break state law and contact immigration and customs officials if his department encounters someone in the country illegally.

“If I get somebody that comes through my jail facility who has committed a heinous crime, who was a threat to our community and is somehow going to get released prior to any type of court proceedings, does not have a conviction. Then my stance is I’m going to work with ICE, contact ICE,” Redman said. “I’m not going to release them back out in the community.”

What You Need To Know

  • Amador County Sheriff Gary Redman said he would contact ICE if his department encounters someone in the country illegally

  • The California Values Act passed in 2017 and bars state and local law enforcement from enforcing federal immigration laws and from contacting ICE with few exceptions, including after a person has served a sentence

  • Before 2017, Redman said they contacted ICE three to four times a year, mainly regarding undocumented people from countries such as Cambodia and Laos

  • Redman noted that there has been a little backlash over his stance, but overall, he said he has the backing of the community

The California Values Act, passed in 2017, bars state and local law enforcement from enforcing federal immigration laws and from contacting ICE with few exceptions, including after a person has served a sentence.

Before 2017, Redman said they contacted ICE three to four times a year, mainly regarding undocumented people from countries like Cambodia and Laos arrested at illegal grow houses. He said he respects the California Values Act and follows 99% of it but emphasizes he’s only concerned with illegal immigrants committing serious crimes.

“If you’re not going to get on our radar, you’re not out there committing crimes, you know, especially violent felonies,” Redman said. “You’re not posing a public safety risk. We’re not going to get involved with any type of immigration enforcement. That’s not my job.”

In the first 50 days of the Trump administration, ICE reported over 32,000 arrests of undocumented individuals.

The DOJ has threatened to prosecute local law enforcement that fails to comply with federal immigration laws, leaving immigrant communities, like those in the northern city of Davis, on edge.

In response, local authorities held a community forum on immigration, at which Davis Police Chief Todd Henry expressed his support for the state law strengthening community ties.

“I want our community to have trust in us and to know that we’re going to follow the law as prescribed by the state of California,” Henry said. “And to do that, it’s probably important for us to find different opportunities to be able to present that message. So we’ve tried to fill that space as much as we possibly can.”  

Henry is not alone in his stance. Four hundred miles south in Los Angeles, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell agrees.

“We talk to our partners at DHS, FBI, ATF all the time on a variety of different things,” McDonnell said. “They’re very clear on what our policy is and has been since 1979, that LAPD does not participate in civil immigration enforcement.”

Redman explained that there has been a little backlash over his stance, but overall, he said he has the backing of the community. He added that he has sought advice about potential lawsuits from the state over his position.

“I actually had a conversation with some of the supervisors and my county council,” Redman said. “So, my county counsel will be the one representing us. He honestly wasn’t too worried about it.”

Redman noted that his intention was in the interest of public safety.