AG Knudsen Blasts Gallatin County Attorney for Opposing ICE Agreement
Attorney General Austin Knudsen called County Attorney Audrey Cromwell's legal opinion "fundamentally flawed."
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen criticized a legal opinion written by Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell last week that told the Gallatin County Commission not to agree to a contract that would allow the federal government to temporarily detain non-local illegal immigrants.
On April 24, Cromwell said that Gallatin County should not enter into an agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) due to constitutional concerns, legal liabilities, strain on county resources and current immigration enforcement participation.
“Participation in federal civil immigration enforcement will cause significant social tension and can diminish trust in local government and law enforcement.
Communities with immigrant populations have historically expressed fear and reluctance to engage with local authorities when those agencies are perceived to cooperate with ICE,” Cromwell wrote.
“This dynamic undermines public safety by discouraging crime reporting, witness cooperation, and engagement with victim support services,” she added.
Three days before Cromwell issued this opinion, the Gallatin County Commission sent a letter to ICE regarding its negotiations with the federal government to allow the county detention center to set aside 10 beds in the facility to hold illegal immigrants temporarily.
After a commission meeting on May 10, Gallatin County decided not to enter into an agreement with ICE. Public members came to speak out against the contract.
In Knudsen’s letter to the commission, he said that Cromwell’s legal opinion was “fundamentally flawed and contrary to Montana public policy.”
He added that her legal opinion consisted mainly of political objections to enforcing immigration law rather than “actual legal analysis.”
The attorney general stated that the opinion was an “endorsement of the disastrous open border policies of the Biden administration.”
His letter cited a March operation where three illegal immigrants were arrested in Gallatin County on drug-related offenses.
Knudsen requested the commission to reconsider partnering with ICE.
“It is critical that the Commission ignore Ms. Cromwell’s flawed ‘opinion’ and work in partnership with ICE to detain dangerous criminals here in our country illegally,” the attorney general wrote.
“The Montana Department of Justice stands ready to assist you in keeping our streets safe from drugs and violent criminals. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need additional assistance,” he added.
After Knudsen issued this letter, Cromwell said she stood by it.
“As Gallatin County Attorney, I uphold the law. Nothing about this detention contract makes Gallatin County a safer place to live, work, or go to school,” she told KBZK.
Stacy Zinn, former head of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) in Montana, previously told The Montana Chronicles that the place where Mexican cartels have the largest influence in the state is Bozeman, which is in Gallatin County.
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Zachery Schmidt is the founder of The Montana Chronicles. If you have any tips, please send them to montanachronicles@proton.me.