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Residents urge commission to scrutinize Homeland Security grant, cite concerns about ICE detentions
Summary
Dozens of public commenters at Washoe County's Aug. 19 meeting urged commissioners to scrutinize a proposed Department of Homeland Security grant tied to detention-center remodel work that could be used for ICE operations, citing due‑process concerns, requests for transparency and potential county liability.
Dozens of residents used the meeting's public-comment period Aug. 19 to press Washoe County commissioners for more information and scrutiny before the board considers a Department of Homeland Security grant that would fund renovation work at the county detention center.
The speakers, including long-time Reno and Washoe County residents and community organizers, raised similar concerns: that ICE agents nationwide have conducted warrantless detentions, sometimes masked and in unmarked vehicles, and that continuing or expanding local cooperation without safeguards could expose detainees to due‑process violations and the county to legal liability.
The chorus of speakers framed the issue as both a civil‑liberties and public‑safety question. "My ask today are that you resist the march into fascism," said Milroy (identified in the record only by surname), who urged the board to ensure federal agents operate here with…
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