Residents ask Mahoning County commissioners for transparency on ICE detainee housing and revenues

Residents at the Mahoning County Board of Commissioners meeting on July 24 pressed elected officials for details about federal immigration detainees being held at the county jail and how related revenues are handled. Speakers asked who approved the housing arrangements, how often the county is reimbursed and whether commissioners have control over the receipts.

Why it matters: Commenters said the issue raises questions about county oversight, use of public facilities and possible profit from housing federal detainees. Commissioners responded that the sheriff’s office manages federal contracts and that questions about detainee operations and contract revenues should be directed to Sheriff Jerry Green.

Darlene Petrola, 3062 Palmeri Drive, told the board: “This whole deportation debacle is racism and xenophobia disguised as keeping communities safe.” She said detainees are “being abducted by masked men with no identification in unmarked cars and held in jails such as ours,” and asserted that private incarceration firms “are making bank” with national figures she provided.

Petrola cited national statistics she said show 13,467 people booked in June, an average detention of 47 days, a 10.5% bond approval rate, an average bond amount of $7,090 and an estimated $94,000,000 in revenue. She also described local figures she said applied to Mahoning County: average stays of 45 to 60 days, a capacity of 100 to 150 detainees and a federal per‑detainee payment of $125 per day.

Michael Kripchak, of Youngstown, repeated a list of specific questions for the board: who approved the arrangement and when; how often reimbursements arrive; whether commissioners have influence or control over funds or detentions; whether there is a surplus from reimbursements; what the monies are funding; and where any profits go. He said the community is seeking “transparency.”

A commissioner responding at the meeting said the public should address those operational and contractual questions to Sheriff Jerry Green, noting the sheriff is the county’s chief law enforcement officer and that federal inmate contracts flow through the sheriff’s office. The commissioner said, “I can’t personally speak for the federal level,” and added that the commissioners “control the sheriff’s budget, but we don’t control how the government comes.”

Commissioners referenced a prior “justice tax” and other funds used to maintain the jail and said federal inmate contracts predated recent public concerns. One commissioner told Kripchak that if the sheriff is unresponsive, members of the public could return to the board to request further discussion.

Discussion versus action: The meeting record shows questions and public concern but no formal motion, vote or policy change addressing the detainee housing or contract oversight. Commissioners directed the public to seek further information from the sheriff.

What was not specified: The board did not provide a timeline of when the county began housing ICE detainees, a public accounting of reimbursements, a detailed breakdown of how any federal payments are spent, or whether any surplus exists. Those details were requested by speakers but not provided on the record.

Next steps: Commissioners said Sheriff Jerry Green or the sheriff’s office budget hearings are the appropriate venues for detailed contract and reimbursement information. Residents seeking those specifics were told they may follow up with the sheriff and may return to the board if they do not receive answers.