The Village of Gratis Police Department confirmed Officer Jeffrey Baylor submitted his resignation following an incident last week in which he and Chief Tonina Lamanna visited three schools in the Cincinnati Public School District on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Lamanna and Baylor were placed on administrative leave Sunday, days after CPS Superintendent Shauna Murphy claimed the officers tried to enter a high school and two elementary schools without a warrant to conduct "wellness checks" on several students believed to be enrolled in the district.
ICE confirmed with WVXU that the Gratis Police Department has partnered with the federal agency as part of its "Unaccompanied Alien Children Safety Verification Initiative." ICE claims the initiative was created to protect children who came unaccompanied across the U.S. border from sexual abuse and exploitation, adding that the Gratis officers were not conducting an enforcement action.
Interim Gratis Police Chief Matt Jones tells WVXU the department has suspended its agreement with ICE.
The police department in the small Preble County village near Dayton is one of many local law enforcement agencies around the country that have joined ICE's 287(g) partnership program, which allows local agencies to enforce certain aspects of U.S. immigration law.
Agencies can join the program by filling out a memorandum of agreement and submitting it to ICE. Once they've joined the program, law enforcement departments may be eligible for the Department of Justice's State Criminal Alien Assistance Program and receive federal funding.
The Gratis Police Department has a Task Force Model agreement with ICE, which gives officers limited power to engage in immigration enforcement activities under federal supervision.
According to ICE's website, several other southern Ohio police departments have signed the same contract, including Russellville, Sardinia, Fayetteville and Aberdeen police in Brown County; Peebles Police Department in Adams County; and Jamestown Police in Greene County.
The sheriff's offices of Butler, Clermont and Warren counties also have joined the Task Force Model program, with the Butler County Sheriff's Office also entering a Jail Enforcement agreement, allowing the county to process people suspected of immigration offenses in its jail.
The Village of Gratis Council will decide on Thursday whether to accept Officer Baylor's resignation.
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