Center Line, MI — The City of Center Line has officially backed out of a federal immigration training program with ICE after a small but loud group of agitators disrupted a City Council meeting on Monday night.
The 287(g) program is a federally funded partnership that allows local law enforcement to receive training on how to identify and process individuals in the country illegally who are already facing criminal charges. More than 2,000 local municipalities across the country take part in the program.
Center Line’s version of the agreement would have only allowed its Public Safety Officers to receive classroom instruction and limited enforcement oversight from ICE during normal duties. The program did not include raids, house visits, or joint immigration operations, but instead focused on understanding immigration law, cultural communication, and racial profiling avoidance.
During the November 3rd meeting, several attendees became disruptive, yelling over council members and forcing some to be removed so the meeting could continue. The city described many of the objections as politically motivated or based on misinformation spread online in the days leading up to the meeting.
After the incident, City Manager Dennis Champine (pictured) and the Public Safety Director reversed course and withdrew from the 287(g) agreement less than 24 hours later. The city has since informed ICE that Center Line will not participate, canceled a public meeting planned for later in November, and said the topic will not be discussed again.
City officials stated they will not make any further comment on the matter.
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