Beltrami County Attorney Joins Statewide Rejection of Sheriffs-ICE Proposal

County attorneys across Minnesota, including the Beltrami County Attorney, concluded that a proposed basic ordering agreement (BOA) between local jails and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would conflict with state law and expose counties to legal risk. The BOA under discussion would give ICE up to 48 hours to retrieve people targeted for immigration enforcement after their scheduled release from county jails.

The Minnesota Association of County Attorneys reviewed the agreements and advised that the BOA model “would not comport with Minnesota law,” Robert Small, executive director of the Minnesota Sheriffs’ Association, said after the review. The attorney general reached a similar legal view last February, writing that “Minnesota law prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies from holding someone based on an immigration detainer if the person would otherwise be released from custody.”

Drafts of similar agreements used in other states show ICE seeks “reasonable access to all detainees or inmates for purposes of interviewing such individuals for immigration enforcement-related purposes,” language that would expand federal presence inside county jails and potentially prolong detention beyond scheduled release times. The ACLU of Minnesota has warned local officials that cooperating on immigration holds will not shield counties from liability. “You do not have legal authority to enforce civil immigration law,” ACLU-MN Legal Director Teresa Nelson said. Nelson urged law enforcement to reconsider any plan that would hold people past their release time.

Several Minnesota counties have faced litigation over post-release holds. Anoka, Nobles and Carver counties have been sued by the ACLU for detaining people after release; Nobles and Anoka were successfully sued in cases involving immigrants held after their cases concluded. Ramsey County Attorney John Choi has said holding inmates beyond their scheduled release could expose counties to wrongful detention lawsuits. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty called the BOA proposal “outrageous,” saying that handing people to ICE before conviction “strips our community of the accountability it deserves and harms victims by robbing them of a court process.”

Sheriffs’ association leaders and county attorneys met on Feb. 2 to discuss the BOA option. An individual identified only as Homan participated in talks and reportedly suggested the federal government might cover counties’ legal liability if they cooperated. Hennepin and Ramsey counties are considered unlikely to enter into such agreements; Hennepin ended an earlier ICE workspace at its jail about a decade ago after resident opposition.

For Beltrami County residents, the county attorney’s stance means local policy is likely to follow Minnesota’s legal limits rather than an expanded local role in immigration enforcement. The dispute highlights the practical tension between federal enforcement objectives and local legal obligations and community trust. Watch for any county-level statements from the Beltrami County Attorney or Sheriff and for any releases of the BOA draft language that could clarify operational details and legal exposure.