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Sheriff explains SB8 training; commissioners ratify MOA allowing ERO detention training
Summary
Brewster County ratified a state agreement tied to Senate Bill 8 that funds ERO/ICE-related detention training for local deputies. The sheriff said the training applies only in jail custody situations and does not create an ICE office in the county.
The court considered and ratified a memorandum of agreement connected to Senate Bill 8 and a state fund that pays for ERO detention training. Sheriff explained the program, saying the agreement is effectively required for Texas sheriffs and that the training (a month-long program in South Carolina) is intended to allow local detention staff to process fingerprints and detainers without waiting for external ERO personnel.
"We do not have an ICE office here," the sheriff said. "It's only in a jail situation...we're not immigration officers. This is strictly when they're incarcerated in the jail." The sheriff added the training itself is free, but the county would need to cover lodging and travel expenses for staff attending the one-month program.
Some commissioners expressed concern that cooperation with ERO might deter vulnerable residents from seeking help; the sheriff and others said the county's authority over immigration is limited to post-arrest detention processing and that federal agencies would handle immigration enforcement outside of that narrow context. The court voted to ratify the agreement.
