Torrance County commissioner responds to public comments from immigration nonprofit groups

During the Oct. 9 Torrance County Commission meeting, Commissioner Sam Schropp read a statement venting his frustration with some immigration nonprofit groups that had provided statements during public comment regarding the contract between the Torrance County Detention Facility (TCDF) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The Torrance County Commission voted unanimously Sept. 25 to extend the contract between the detention facility and ICE until Dec. 31. 

Although there was no discussion by county commissioners about the contract extension during the Sept. 25 meeting, the majority of the public comments involved the renewal of the contract and commenters read statements from detainees at the facility.

Schropp said he was frustrated that no sworn statements or comments were provided under oath. He also referred to past statements by immigration advocates during public comment at commission meetings and implied that they were deceptive. 

“I want to clear something up, none of what we have heard in public comment, at this meeting or past meetings, is testimony,” Schropp said. “No one has been sworn to tell the truth, and there are no penalties for knowingly or unknowingly making false or misleading statements.”

In statements read, and translated when necessary, at the Sept. 25 meeting by attorneys and advocates from organizations like Innovation Law Lab, the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center and Volunteers for Immigrants in Detention, current and former detainees said that they have been separated from their families and deported to countries like Venezuela that do not have deportation agreements with the United States. 

During its Sept. 11 meeting, Torrance County commissioners heard statements, read by advocates, from detainees who said they were held at TCDF after seeking asylum from countries where they were targeted for political opposition to their government. Statements from detainees alleged that they were not provided with adequate food or hygiene products like shampoo or toilet paper, and were sometimes denied water when they asked for it. Advocates also read statements from detainees saying they were not provided with essential medicine like insulin, and were forced to sign paperwork saying that they were. 

At the Sept. 11 meeting, immigration attorney and Director of Policy and Coalition Building at the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center Jessica Martinez said she has worked with legal experts who have “documented and substantiated claims of terrible conditions in these detention centers.”

“A case that continues to haunt me is one of a man with a bone sticking out of his ankle and nothing was being done for him,” she said. 

Schropp said he referred that claim and other claims about a detainee with cancer who was not being treated, one with diabetes who was not receiving medication and another who had a seizure and went untreated to U.S. Rep. Melanie Stansbury’s office.

“Without a HIPPA release, there is no way to investigate these claims,” Schropp said. “Some of the immigration advocates are attorneys and I assume they are licensed in New Mexico. They are remiss in their representation of their clients and there are sanctions for that.”

Schropp said each immigration advocate should have had a signed HIPPA release that would allow medical records to be reviewed by an expert and appropriate action to be taken in federal court.

“Instead, the people representing those detainees come to these chambers and read statements,” Schropp said. “That conduct should be reviewed by the New Mexico Bar Association for ethics violations and inadequate representation.”

Schopp said he plans to revisit the minutes of previous meetings and refer the names of some advocates to the New Mexico Bar Association for review. 

Schropp scolded immigration advocates for wasting the time of the commission and the time of their clients by making public comments in favor of shutting down the detention facility. He also criticized “Dignity Not Detention,” a phrase used by some New Mexicans to call for the closure of detention facilities in the state. The Dignity Not Detention Act, a bill that aimed to end the detention of immigrants for civil immigration violations in the state, was blocked by lawmakers in the 2023 legislative session. 

“The slogan, Dignity Not Detention, is just as foolish a slogan as Defund the Police, or Abolish ICE, and the theory of decarceration does not apply to asylum seekers,” Schropp said. “If the immigration advocates are serious about making a change, then join with the deep pockets of the Southern Poverty Law Center and the American Civil Liberties Union, gather sworn testimony and medical records, and sue the leaders of the House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and the Biden administration in federal court to force those parties to reform the immigration system.”