DPD Chief Says Rejected $25M ICE Partnership Required 50 Arrests Per Day

Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux told the City Council on Thursday that the $25 million partnership offered by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) would have required the department to arrest at least 50 undocumented immigrants each day to receive payment. 

Comeaux stated that the quota was shared with him during a phone call conversation about the program, although a representative from ICE denied that the initiative comes with an arrest requirement. In October, Comeaux told the Community Police Oversight Board that he’d rejected a $25 million offer for the Dallas Police Department to join the 297(g) program, which grants local law enforcement authorities jurisdiction over federal immigration enforcement. 

In response, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson called for a joint hearing between the Public Safety and Government Efficiency Committees, suggesting that policy decisions, especially those that come with a paycheck, should be made by “elected policymakers after receiving public input.” 

Addressing the committees on Thursday afternoon, Comeaux defended his decision by stating that a 287(g) partnership would “make no sense” for Dallas because the program would require as many as 250 DPD officers to be reassigned from their regular duties to take over ICE responsibilities “all day every day.” Comeaux said that such a change in personnel would have ramifications on 911 response times, community engagement and drops in violent crime.

He told council members that a 287(g) partnership would result in hundreds of Dallas Police officers spending their days traveling to fast food restaurants and hardware stores “trying to find illegal immigrants to meet [ICE’s] quota” rather than carrying out local law enforcement duties. 

Comeaux also voiced fiscal concerns, stating that while the 287(g) program reimburses regular hours worked by officers who participate in the partnership, it would not cover the overtime hours required to staff positions left vacant by officers focusing on immigration enforcement.

“I sat back, I looked at all of the great things that are happening in Dallas, and it’s not the program for us. It is not going to make Dallas any safer,” Comeaux said. “This program would not help us in any kind of way.” 

“If you have no interpretation of the Constitution, I don’t know how you’re supposed to sit there and sell us on a program that has wreaked havoc across communities.”

council member Adam Bazaldua

Public comments revealed that many Dallasites were upset by the potential partnership. Nearly 70 speakers emphasized that such an agreement would be detrimental to the public’s trust in local law enforcement. 

“This is not just about business or politics; this is about community,” said speaker Martha Luis. 

Several referred to the $25 million offered by ICE as “blood money,” and suggested that the bolstering of the Dallas Police Department’s funding in the latest city budget rendered that money unnecessary. 

“People are actively getting kidnapped by ICE while they are trying to do the right thing,” said Jerry Figueroa, an Oak Cliff business owner. “Let’s not forget that this country is made of immigrants. My blood has been here for 20,000 years, so who is more American?” 

In an interview with CBS News, Johnson said he wanted “to understand what exactly it is that we are being asked to do by ICE.” However, several speakers expressed frustration that the mayor was not present during the meeting. While the mayor does not typically attend committee gatherings, some speakers felt that his attendance at the joint meeting would have been appropriate. Council member Jaime Resendez rebuked Johnson’s call for the meeting, accusing the mayor of engaging in “reckless, self-serving leadership,” and “political provocation.”

Other speakers criticized his record on immigration, stating their belief that Johnson’s interest in considering the 287(g) program was more political than financial. Last November, Johnson appeared on Fox News and expressed his support for President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, stating that Dallas officials would “stand by” the president.

“I am disappointed but not surprised that Mayor Johnson did not grace us with his presence,” said speaker Micaela Watkins. “Eric Johnson wants to be accepted by the [Trump] administration. He is not here today because he is already planning his next move.”

The 287(g) Program 

In June, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 8, which will require sheriff’s departments in counties with more than 100,000 residents to enter into a 287(g) agreement. The program deputizes local law enforcement officers to perform immigration enforcement actions, such as checking whether a person is actively wanted by ICE or inquiring about a person’s immigration status. The Dallas Police Department does not currently ask for immigration status when interacting with community members. 

Representatives for ICE disagreed with Comeaux’s characterization of the program, arguing that an officer would be encouraged to go about their daily duties. An example of program involvement given was if an officer performed a traffic stop and was handed a foreign ID, they would check with ICE to see if that person was “of interest.” If so, that officer would be instructed to make an arrest and transport the person to the Dallas ICE field office. 

The representatives for ICE stated that they “were not involved” in conversations where a $25 million figure was mentioned and had “never heard of a quota” being part of the 287(g) program. (Based on conversation at the horseshoe, it appears the $25 million total would come only if every DPD officer participated in the program, which would be unrealistic if the city decided to move forward with a partnership.)

Additional confusion and frustration came when several council members’ questions about the constitutionality of the program went unanswered.

“If you have no interpretation of the Constitution, I don’t know how you’re supposed to sit there and sell us on a program that has wreaked havoc across communities,” said council member Adam Bazaldua. 

“I sat back, I looked at all of the great things that are happening in Dallas, and it’s not the program for us. It is not going to make Dallas any safer.”

Dallas Police chief daniel comeaux

Only six public speakers voiced support for DPD joining the 287(g) program. Many pointed to a September incident, in which an undocumented immigrant beheaded a Dallas motel manager, as evidence that unenforced immigration is a public safety concern. 

The claim that immigrants can be tied to crime waves gained traction in the 1980s and has become a rallying argument for conservatives, but research suggests that undocumented people commit crimes at a lower rate than U.S. citizens. Looking at 2019 data from Texas, the CATO Institute, a libertarian think tank, found that undocumented immigrants were 37.1% less likely to be convicted of a crime than someone born in the U.S.

“[The left] will call this racist, but let’s be clear. This isn’t about race, it’s about rights,” said Bogdan Laurentiu, a Romanian immigrant and conservative commentator who voiced support for a 287(g) partnership. “The rights of Americans to feel safe.” 

For the most part, council members voiced support for Comeaux’s decision not to participate in a 287(g) partnership and took pride in the number of residents who attended to speak on the issue. Council member Gay Donnell Willis said it was “the first time” she’d ever seen “speakers from every district” sign up to speak on a single issue. 

The council voted unanimously not to pursue a partnership with ICE through the 287(g) program and motioned to suspend the discussion indefinitely, so that it cannot be revisited at a full City Council meeting.

“I would be uncomfortable, personally, trying to represent a community that is afraid,” said council member Lorie Blair. “I appreciate that [Comeaux] did not put me, or any other part of our city, in that predicament. … I appreciate that he wants unity and not division.”