Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings signed an addendum Friday morning to an agreement with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency allowing county corrections officers to transport detainees to ICE detention centers.
Demings was under extraordinary pressure from state leaders to approve the updated agreement. He'll bring the issue before the county commission for ratification on Tuesday.
The commission considered the addendum on July 15 but did not approve it amid public opposition to the county’s involvement with ICE. Demings said at the time that the county didn’t have the capacity to help transport detainees — and that it was not the county's role or responsibility.
On Tuesday, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to Demings and the commission threatening removal from office by the governor if they didn't sign. He accused them of violating a state law that requires local governments to use their "best efforts" to assist ICE.
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Gov. Ron DeSantis later said he was prepared to suspend them. He doubled down on that Friday during an Orlando press conference with members of his Cabinet.
“If you don't meet your obligations under the law, if you don't fulfill the duties that have been imposed upon you, you absolutely will be suspended,” DeSantis said. “I won’t hesitate to do it.”
The governor added he’s “glad it worked out” with Demings ultimately signing the addendum. Funding assistance is available to help localities support ICE operations, DeSantis said.
“We want to get the funding out the door for the localities. I think that that's really important. I think that they'll use it well, and it'll enhance the mission,” DeSantis said. “You're eligible to have it reimbursed by the federal government, so it isn't like it's going to be a cost on your budget ultimately – it's just the front.”
DeSantis' press conference was largely a celebration of Florida’s ongoing collaborations with ICE on multiple agency fronts, including the Florida Highway Patrol and Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
“There's no other state in the country that can match our efforts. In fact, there's no other state that is even in the ballpark of our efforts,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis commended FHP for its “great work” arresting allegedly illegal immigrants, including some who reportedly possessed weapons, drugs and large amounts of cash. Recently in Orange County, DeSantis said, FHP arrested a member of a Venezuelan gang.
So far, more than 600 people have been deported from the Everglades detention facility known as "Alligator Alcatraz," DeSantis said.
“And that cadence is starting to rapidly increase,” DeSantis said. “You drive ‘em 2,000 feet, they get on a plane and then they’re gone.”
Critics of the center in Florida and beyond, including lawmakers, have been sounding the alarm about what they say is a lack of due process for detainees at Alligator Alcatraz, and are alleging there are unlivable conditions.
“The reality is that you can’t sanitize people in cages. There’s just no way,” Democratic state Rep. Anna Eskamani said last week at a community meeting in Orange County, where she and Democratic state Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith spoke about their recent experience visiting the Everglades facility.
“We're talking about a tent city. These are tents you see at an event outside, maybe 6 inches off the ground, with plywood. It's eight cages per tent, 32 men per cage,” Eskamani said. “Everyone started chanting ‘freedom’ in Spanish, and they were yelling at us their names, their health issues, their status. I mean, it's an experience that will never leave our minds.”
ALSO READ: Orange County ratifies agreement to cooperate with ICE
DeSantis and other state leaders insist descriptions of inhumane conditions at Alligator Alcatraz are exaggerated.
“It's the only place I've seen where the staff eats the exact same food as the people that are there for detention and processing,” DeSantis said.
The governor also maintained that while certainly, the government can make mistakes “here or there,” overall, those being detained right now in the Everglades are proof the process is working properly.
“The reality is, you know, these people, by and large, are here illegally. There’s not really much of a question on that,” DeSantis said.
As the detentions in the Everglades ramp up, Florida will be ready to expand capacity, if needed, DeSantis said. Camp Blanding in Northeast Florida is one option where the state could potentially build another, smaller detention facility.
“I think Blanding would have the capacity to do a coupleof thousand [detainees],” DeSantis said. “There’s a lot more that’s going to happen."
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