BRISTOL COUNTY SHERIFF THOMAS HODGSON IS A ZEALOUS SUPPORTER OF THE FORMER pRESIDENT AND MUCH LIKE THE WANNABE DICTATOR, NOTICE THE EXAGERRATED CLAIMS FOR WHICH THEY HAVE NO DOCUMENTATION OF CRIMES.
BE HONEST! THIS IS REALLY ABOUT THE MONEY!
'We're not going to stand down': Hodgson considering legal action following termination of ICE contracts
Published May 23, 2021
DARTMOUTH — Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson on Friday said he's "not going to stand down" and is considering possible legal action one day after the Department of Homeland Security ordered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to immediately terminate its contracts with the sheriff's office.
The county's ICE facility had seven detainees at the time (the most detainees at one time was more than 200), according to BCSO spokesperson Jonathan Darling. They were transferred to Plymouth County Sheriff's Office Thursday, just hours after DHS announced its decision.
Within hours, ICE officials also picked up equipment and took credentials of certain local deputies with specialized ICE training, Darling said.
More: ICE ordered to terminate contract with Bristol County Sheriff's Office, transfer detainees
BCSO says closure presents safety risk
Hodgson said all Massachusetts residents are now at a greater risk of being "victimized by criminal illegal aliens" as a result of this facility closure.
"By letting people out that we otherwise would be holding, they're going back into our communities dealing more drugs onto our kids," he said.
He said the Plymouth detention center wouldn't be able to take future detainees arrested locally because they wouldn't be able to have them transported. Plymouth County "relies" on BCSO for transportation for detainees, Hodgson said, which is no longer possible with the contract termination.
He and Darling listed charges against the remaining seven detainees who were transferred to Plymouth County, including murder, assault and battery, rape of a minor, trafficking illicit drugs and armed robbery.
"These are the kinds of people we're holding here and they think it's okay for us to put them out in the community and not hold them, and expose families," the sheriff said.
Darling was unable to confirm if one of the seven former Bristol County detainees had criminal charges, stating the individual came to the facility from Rhode Island and that he doesn't have his record from that state. However, the other six have charges in Massachusetts or Connecticut, he said.
Not all detainees in ICE detention facilities have criminal charges; they can be held in civil detention for deportation proceedings.
In addition to the housing and transportation contract, BCSO had another contract with the 287(g) program, which gives county officials particular training and the power to perform some immigration duties.
With that program, certain officers also have access to an ICE database and the authority to hold undocumented immigrants, even if they make bail.
Darling said the greatest public safety impact is the end of the 287(g) program. He said without the program, they cannot guarantee "dangerous" undocumented immigrants will not be released as they lack the legal authority to detain them if they make bail.
However, if an undocumented immigrant commits a crime and cannot pay bail, BCSO can still keep them in custody, Darling confirmed.
Sheriff considering a lawsuit
Darling said BCSO had a contract with ICE since 2000. Hodgson said he received no written statements informing him of the contract termination but instead received a call at about 8:30 a.m. on Thursday from regional ICE officials.
According to a document provided by Darling that took effect in October 2003, the agreement between DHS and Bristol County Correctional Facility for housing detainees "shall remain in effect indefinitely, or until terminated by either Party upon 60 days written notice, unless an emergency situation requires the immediate relocation of detainees, or the Parties agree to a shorter period."
Based on this, Hodgson said DHS violated its contract and that he is looking into the potential to sue the federal agency.
"They didn't give me any written notification and they didn't give a 60-day notice," he said.
A DHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the alleged contract violation.
The sheriff and Darling said they do not yet know the future of the facility or how they will use the space, if at all. Darling said no employees would be terminated as a result of the contract termination.
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a memo regarding the decision that he "would not tolerate" the mistreatment of individuals in civil immigration detention or "substandard conditions of detention."
Drawing attention: Community activists revisit incident at Bristol County ICE facility year later with virtual reading
Hodgson on Friday stood behind the actions he and his staff took during an incident last May at the county ICE facility, which resulted in property damage and three detainees being taken to the hospital.
The state attorney general's office found BCSO violated the civil rights of detainees and used disproportionate force during the incident, but the sheriff said they used "best practices" and asked where the charges were if they violated civil rights.
In court: ACLU suing Bristol County Sheriff’s Office for records of altercation in early May
Local and state advocates and officials, as well as the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office, lauded DHS' decision, calling it "long overdue" and an "important step" in addressing the "abuse and neglect" of detainees at the Dartmouth facility.
"It is particularly important because it strips Sheriff Thomas Hodgson, who carried out the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant agenda with zeal, of custodial responsibility for detained immigrants," said Carol Rose, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, in a statement. "By shuttering detention facilities with a track record of problematic conditions and ending local collaboration with ICE, we can work together toward a fairer and more humane immigration system.”
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