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Santa Barbara County forum erupts over sheriff's voluntary cooperation with ICE; board receives report
Summary
Roughly 65 speakers at a Truth Act/SB54 forum urged the Board of Supervisors to end voluntary transfers and data-sharing with ICE. Sheriff Brown defended the office's practices and reported a modest number of transfers; the board received and filed the report.
The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors received and filed the sheriff's annual Truth Act (SB54) report on June 23 after a multihour community forum in Santa María that drew about 65 public speakers.
Sheriff Brown and jail command staff presented the department's procedures for handling federal immigration inquiries, including the use of criminal-history checks and a timeline for notification and transfer decisions. The sheriff told the board, “El sheriff no hace ejecutar las leyes de inmigración,” explaining the office's legal limits and noting that ICE often executes arrests in public areas outside the jail's secured zones. Command staff also described a protocol change for installing SCRAM ankle monitors inside secure areas after a review of an incident described in local reporting.
During the presentation the sheriff's team said the county recorded fewer ICE information requests and transfers in 2025 than in 2024: the staff slide deck showed 229 requests in 2024 and 121 in 2025, 33 federal judicial orders in 2025 and 12 transfers reported for that year. County presenters emphasized that many federal arrests near the jail are executed by ICE or other federal agents and are not actions the sheriff's office can unilaterally stop.
Public comment focused on the sheriff's voluntary cooperation with ICE. Dozens of speakers described families harmed by transfers, cited national reporting and academic data, and urged the board to direct the sheriff to stop voluntary data-sharing and on-site federal arrests. "We ask the sheriff and the board to stop collaborating with ICE," several speakers told the supervisors. Community organizations and immigration advocates requested clearer reporting, a tracking protocol for arrests near county facilities, and a formal local policy limiting cooperation to only judicial orders.
Supervisors asked for clarification about definitions used in the report (for example, the difference between a federal judicial order and a peripheral arrest), the process by which sheriff's staff reviews ICE requests, and what the county legally can require. Several supervisors said they wanted staff to study policy options other California counties have adopted that limit voluntary cooperation to signed judicial warrants.
After deliberations, the board voted to receive and file the Truth Act report. Board members also requested follow-up briefings to explore whether the county can adopt a policy to limit voluntary cooperation, and asked county counsel and the sheriff's office to return with options.
What's next: Supervisors asked county staff to research policy models used by other counties and to return with options for board consideration. The department also committed to continued outreach to community groups about operational practices and transparency.
Sources: Presentation and data supplied during the Truth Act agenda item; public comment heard at the June 23, 2026 Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors meeting.
