Merced sheriff criticizes California ICE reporting laws, calls for local cooperation
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- Merced Sheriff Warnke criticized state required ICE reporting as wasteful and burdensome.
- Warnke reported increased ICE operations due to limited local cooperation.
- ICE sent Merced County Sheriff’s Office 233 detainer requests last year.
Merced County’s Sheriff Vern Warnke called California’s immigration reporting requirements “a waste of taxpayer money” even though his office followed state law and did not honor ICE detainers in 2024.
“I think it’s everything that goes on here, and the people that want those statistics are using it against law enforcement, you know, against protecting citizens,” said during an interview the day after he delivered the mandatory report to the Merced County Board of Supervisors on Sept. 9. “That’s all they’re doing. But yet, I have to devote staff to maintain the records, to put together a report for me for that one. There’s 300 other things they need to be doing than that.”
The report documented statistics for ICE requests and jail interactions. California’s TRUTH ACT requires local jurisdictions and law enforcement to hold an annual public forum so community members can know about ICE’s activity in the area.
But during the interview Warnke heavily criticized the mandatory report and said he preferred that law enforcement could cooperate with ICE.
“In 2024, we had 233 felons arrested that were here illegally, and we had to release them onto the streets back to create more victims,” Warnke said. “I don’t agree with (Gov. Gavin Newsom) or (Attorney General Rob Bonta) on the policies that have been set forth about cooperation with the federal government.”
Warnke said the lack of cooperation between ICE and local law enforcement in California is causing ICE to conduct operations in California communities.
He told the County Board of Supervisors and the public on Sept. 9 his office does not conduct joint agency operations with immigration authorities.
He also told the Board of Supervisors that the Sheriff’s Office has seen an increase in immigration enforcement action in the community from ICE that is believed to be due to the lack of communication by correctional facilities.
“The fact that we can’t cooperate as sheriffs, it’s causing ICE to come into our communities,” he said. “And some of them, they put the masks on and everything else. Well, the big issue is, they come into the community, start snatching people up. Well, you know who else does that is the cartels.”
ICE has notified him they were in the community three times this year, he said, but could not specify when.
“I support them in their job to get rid of felons, and the fact that folks are here illegally sits raw with me also,” Warnke said.
“I would love to see us honor those detainers, okay, but they made it a law,” Warnke said.