Thread: TN: Lawsuit challenges Davidson County sheriff's immigration

Lawsuit challenges Davidson County sheriff's immigration powers
U.S. citizen held twice cites 1963 Metro charter
4:39 AM, Feb. 13, 2011

Written by
Brian Haas

An American citizen held as an illegal immigrant in Davidson County — more than once — may have the strongest legal argument yet against the sheriff's role in a federal deportation program.

Daniel Renteria-Villegas, a 19-year-old Portland, Ore.-born man, has been detained twice by the Davidson County Sheriff's Office on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant, in spite of having a valid Tennessee driver's license, passport, birth certificate and Social Security number. Now he's challenging the sheriff's very authority to participate in a federal immigration enforcement program called 287(g).

He has filed a lawsuit demanding that Sheriff Daron Hall be banned from participating in the program. The argument: Metro's 1963 charter, which stripped the sheriff's office of most of its law-enforcement powers, prohibits jailers from immigration enforcement. This latest challenge, by attorney Elliott Ozment, may be the biggest threat to one of Hall's hallmark programs.

On Feb. 25, a Davidson County Chancery Court judge probably will decide whether to grant a temporary injunction stopping Davidson County from enforcing immigration laws under the 287(g) program. Immigration attorneys will be paying close attention to the results.

"I think it's a very important case," said Sean Lewis, another Nashville immigration attorney. "Of all the 287(g) programs as far as I know, this is the only jail program where the jailers have absolutely no police powers. They're like the librarian. A librarian can't detain and interview immigrants."

Hall said in a statement that he "absolutely believes the Davidson County Sheriff's Office has the authority" to be in the program, but declined to comment further. Metro attorneys plan to file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit soon.

"We're watching it with bated breath," said immigration attorney Linda Rose. "It looks like a really good argument to me. And, it's an important argument."
U.S. stays out of dispute

The sheriff's list of allies in the case is short. Despite an agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that says the federal government can defend local agencies against such lawsuits, the feds want no part in fighting Renteria-Villegas' lawsuit.

"The United States does not intend to appear or participate" in the suit, read a letter from U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin.

The 287(g) program is an agreement between the federal government and local agencies that allows police and jailers to interrogate, serve warrants on, collect evidence, prepare charges and detain people suspected of being in the United States illegally. At least 70 such agreements exist across the nation. Davidson County entered into that agreement in 2007.

If Ozment's challenge is successful, the agreement's demise can be traced to Aug. 14, 2010, along a stretch of Glenrose Avenue.

Early that morning, Renteria-Villegas and six other people were refused entrance to El Coyote, a local nightclub. Shortly after that, police said, gunshots were fired in the area. An officer said he witnessed the shooting and tried to pull over Renteria-Villegas' 1995 Honda Passport.

According to court records, the car didn't stop until it smashed into a railroad crossing sign pole. Police said they chased Renteria-Villegas down and arrested him on charges of evading arrest and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

According to the lawsuit, Renteria-Villegas' family tried to pay his bond two days after he was arrested, but he was being held on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant. They returned with copies of his birth certificate and passport on Aug. 19. That wasn't good enough. They came back again that night with the originals.

He was released the next day, four hours after his family thought they proved he was a legal immigrant.

But two days later, he was arrested again, this time on an aggravated assault charge in connection with the Aug. 14 shooting.

According to the lawsuit, he underwent an immigration interrogation by officials at the jail who didn't believe he was born in the United States because a Metro police officer had inexplicably written his place of birth as "Mexico."

The lawsuit said Renteria-Villegas gave them his Tennessee driver's license and Social Security number, but jailers held him because of questions about his citizenship.

On Sept. 3, a Davidson County General Sessions judge dismissed the aggravated assault charge, but he still had an immigration hold on him and was not released from jail.

His family again went to the jail with his birth certificate and passport and he was released the next day.
Charter stripped powers

Ozment's central argument against the sheriff goes back to the Metro government 1963 charter, which consolidated Nashville and Davidson County functions into one government umbrella. Part of that charter stripped the sheriff of certain law enforcement powers, leaving him solely in charge of serving civil summonses and running county detention facilities.

The sheriff at the time, Robert Poe, went ahead and hired close to 1,000 new employees in violation of the charter, which prompted Metro to sue his office. In 1964, the Tennessee Supreme Court sided largely with Metro and reiterated that the sheriff's power had mostly been removed.

"The duties of the Sheriff of Davidson County in regard to criminal law enforcement have been taken from him by the Charter," the court ruled.

Fast forward 43 years. Hall, citing the 2006 deaths of a Mt. Juliet couple who died in a crash with an illegal immigrant who was driving drunk, signed onto the 287(g) program. According to the original agreement with immigration officials, a handful of Davidson County employees "receive authorization to perform immigration officer functions" and participate in "immigration enforcement activities."

Ozment argues the agreement is incompatible with Metro's charter.

Dewey Branstetter, a local attorney who is chairman of the Metro Charter Revision Commission and whose father, Cecil, helped write the charter, was intrigued by Ozment's argument.

"Clearly, in 1963 when the charter was adopted, the intent was to have all law enforcement functions in the police department, leaving really just the jail and serving of warrants … with the sheriff's office," Branstetter said. "I will say it is a very interesting argument that is certainly worthy of consideration."

Even if Ozment's challenge isn't successful, Renteria-Villegas' ordeal is a disturbing example of what can go wrong with the 287(g) program, said Katharine Donato, a professor of sociology at Vanderbilt University.

"I find that extremely troubling. Would any of us like to be held for longer than maybe a 24-hour period if we're U.S. born, have a passport?" Donato said. "Then to have it done once, have it validated, then he has to come back into the system again. It's extremely troubling."

But proponents of stronger immigration enforcement say a single case shouldn't be grounds to scrap the whole program.

Dave Gorak, executive director of the Wisconsin-based Midwest Coalition to Reduce Immigration, didn't know the details of the Renteria-Villegas case. But he said 287(g) has been too successful in deporting illegal immigrants and reducing crime to abandon.

"Every law is subject to abuse, but that doesn't mean they should be scrapped,'' Gorak said. "More often than not abuse takes place not because of the law itself but because of the actions of those charged with implementing it."

Contact Brian Haas at 615-726-8968 or bhaas@tennessean.com.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20110 ... ion-powers?

Dave Gorak, executive director of the Wisconsin-based Midwest Coalition to Reduce Immigration, didn't know the details of the Renteria-Villegas case. But he said 287(g) has been too successful in deporting illegal immigrants and reducing crime to abandon.

When those type of duties are performed, be sure they are all legal, later there will not be any civil claims. They are often searching for excuses, so use caution!!!

The sheriff's list of allies in the case is short. Despite an agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that says the federal government can defend local agencies against such lawsuits, the feds want no part in fighting Renteria-Villegas' lawsuit.

"The United States does not intend to appear or participate" in the suit, read a letter from U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin.

Naturally....

This man was used in a setup. He made every effort to fool law enforcement into thinking he was in the country Illegally so that he would be treated as such...

Originally Posted by PaulRevere9

This man was used in a setup. He made every effort to fool law enforcement into thinking he was in the country Illegally so that he would be treated as such...

First thought that crossed my mind too!

Originally Posted by PaulRevere9

This man was used in a setup. He made every effort to fool law enforcement into thinking he was in the country Illegally so that he would be treated as such...

Agree