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Sonoma County Truth Act forum: Sheriff defends policies as residents press for sanctuary ordinance
Summary
At a Truth Act community forum, Sheriff Ingram said Sonoma County provides less ICE information than the public would receive and that two 2024 transfers to ICE followed judicial warrants; dozens of residents urged the Board to adopt a non‑collaboration/sanctuary ordinance and demanded greater transparency about enforcement funding.
Sheriff Aaron Ingram told the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and a packed public forum that the sheriff’s office provided information to Immigration and Customs Enforcement on 64 of 484 requests in 2024 and transferred two people to ICE in 2024 — transfers he said were the result of federal judicial warrants. ‘‘We do not collaborate with ICE,’’ Ingram said, adding the office ‘‘give[s] ICE less information than we would give any member of the public.’’
The forum — convened to meet Truth Act requirements and explain how local law enforcement interacts with ICE — drew repeated public pleas for a sanctuary or non‑collaboration ordinance. Dozens of residents, service‑providers and advocates described fear among immigrant families and urged the Board to use its budget authority and other tools to limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. ‘‘The hypocrisy has to end,’’ said Alegria de la Cruz, a litigator and daughter of farmworkers, calling on supervisors to ‘‘lean into your power’’ on behalf of immigrant neighbors.
Why it matters: California law requires a public forum when a local law enforcement agency gives ICE access to individuals in custody. The…
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