Mille Lacs County Sheriff Kyle Burton joined Liz Collin on her podcast to speak out and take a stand for law and order.
Sheriff Burton explained how Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison recently sent a letter pushing back on a program that allows state and local law enforcement to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
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Sheriff Burton is one of just seven sheriffs in Minnesota who are involved in the program, known as the 287(g) Program, which allows law enforcement agencies to assist ICE in identifying people for arrest and potential deportation.
“I signed the agreement with ICE back in April. My agency entered into the task force model. It’s not fully operational yet. The reason that we joined the task force, or that I felt it was necessary for us to do that, if nothing else, it’s a deterrent,” Sheriff Burton said.
“If there are violent criminal illegal aliens that are perhaps intent on setting up shop here in my county to do nefarious things, perhaps the fact that we’ve got 14 287(g) task force officers in a small county like this would be a deterrent to maybe not do so,” he added.
Sheriff Burton explained how the program allows his agency to assist ICE “in apprehending certain individuals who they’ve deemed to be the most dangerous.”
Burton said the top law enforcement priority is “the worst, first,” meaning “those who are here not only illegally, but have also committed violent or heinous crimes.”
Ellison sent Burton a letter last week expressing “concerns” about the agreement between the Mille Lacs County sheriff and ICE.
Ellison wrote that “the current agreement violates Minnesota law and is invalid,” arguing that Minnesota’s Joint Exercise of Powers Act “requires that such agreements be entered into by a resolution of the board of county commissioners.”
“A sheriff’s office cannot enter into such an agreement on its own behalf, separate from the county,” he wrote.
Ellison, however, stated that the county could “enter a new, valid agreement if its Board of Commissioners wishes to do so,” but advised Sheriff Burton “that even a valid agreement with ICE does not permit local law enforcement officers to arrest or hold persons under civil immigration detainers.”
Burton finds Ellison’s letter ‘troubling’
Sheriff Burton questioned Ellison’s letter: “You have to kind of wonder that this is our attorney general in Minnesota, our top law enforcement officer. That’s what the attorney general of any state is. So why would they be against something like this that really centers around safety?”
For Burton, Ellison’s letter points to an even bigger problem.
“I think the attorney general and the governor of Minnesota have both been very much opposed to the president’s stance on illegal immigration and cracking down on border security,” Burton said.
“Our governor has been quoted publicly referring to ICE agents as the Gestapo. So when that kind of rhetoric is being said by top-level officials, such as the governor and now the attorney general who is clearly not in support of this program, it’s troubling,” Burton added.
In further questioning Ellison’s letter, Sheriff Burton said, “The reality is the vast majority of America voted for this. So why they’re opposed to it or why they want to seem to throw up roadblocks, I don’t understand it.”
Sheriff Burton also disagreed with Ellison’s position in the letter and the authority that sheriffs have in Minnesota.
“There’s a statute in Minnesota, Chapter 387.03, which talks about the authority given to the sheriff by statute and it gives the sheriff very broad authority under that to basically do whatever the sheriff deems necessary to preserve the peace of the county. So I disagree that I don’t have the authority to enter into the agreement without the signature of the county board,” Burton explained.
Burton also took issue with Ellison’s advisement about how “it’s against Minnesota law to detain somebody solely based on a civil ICE detainer alone.”
In clarifying the top priority of the 287(g) agreement, Sheriff Burton pointed out, “Again, that’s not the focus. If you talk to the folks at DHS, that’s not their mission right now. We’re not seeking to go out and detain people unless they have warrants that actually have a judge’s signature on them. That’s what our focus is going to be here.”
Collin recently rode along with ICE agents from the St. Paul field office who were involved in doing just that: executing warrants signed by a judge to arrest criminal offenders.
Sheriff Burton also shared some sharp remarks about Attorney General Ellison and soft-on-crime policies.
Alpha News contacted the Attorney General’s Office but did not receive a response.
Liz Collin
Liz Collin is a multi-Emmy-Award-winning investigative reporter, news anchor, and producer who cares about Minnesota. She is the producer of The Fall of Minneapolis and Minnesota v We the People documentary films, and author of the Amazon best-selling book, They’re Lying: The Media, the Left, and The Death of George Floyd. Her work has prompted important state laws. Yet perhaps most of all, Liz has been giving a voice to the truth—and helping others tell their stories—for more than 20 years.
Dr. JC Chaix
Dr. JC Chaix is an editor, educator, and an expert in media studies. He wrote and directed the Alpha News documentary "The Fall of Minneapolis" and "Minnesota v We the People."
