Sheriff clarifies erroneous sanctuary county claim

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene is clearing up some misinformation about the status of Mahoning County as it pertains to detainers requested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the county.

Greene issued a news release Thursday saying that Mahoning County is not a sanctuary county and that to become one would take a resolution with the Board of Mahoning County Commissioners and that “has never happened and never will happen,” Greene wrote.

“We fully support and defer to Sheriff Greene and his department in setting and implementing policies that ensure the safety and security of our residents,” commissioners wrote in a prepared statement.

Greene said the issue came up after dated information showed up in an ICE internal tracker that contained “erroneous” information. He said he talked to the deputy field office director of the Detroit Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations with ICE, which oversees all of Ohio, and learned that information contained in an ICE internal tracker, which was “extremely dated,” contained “erroneous” information. Greene did not say what that information was.

Although it was dated June 2024, Green said it had not been updated or actively tracked for the past four years.

“The report has been retired, as Executive Order 13768 was rescinded,” Greene wrote.

Executive Order 13768 was signed by former President Donald Trump in 2017. It said that sanctuary jurisdictions that don’t comply with immigration laws will not receive federal funding.

Greene said that he was assured by ICE that the agency “values the strong partnership with the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and recognizes that all ICE detainers have been honored and continue to be honored.” Greene added that ICE is confident that detainers placed on illegal immigrants discovered in Mahoning County are honored.

“Mahoning County was confirmed by Homeland Security/ICE as being a cooperating agency with immigration enforcement,” Greene wrote.

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