Talks and Resources

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My name is David Veneziano and I am the Democratic candidate running for St Charles County Executive.

Last meeting I was here asking for the repeal of the 287(g) agreement. Maybe I shot too high, so I’d like to take a more focused approach tonight. I want to focus on one person who we, as St Charles County, can help. I actually mentioned her at the last council meeting.

Her name is Armande Rhea Namegni. She is originally from Cameroon but was forced to flee because she spoke English and was facing persecution. Upon arriving in the United States, she immediately presented herself to authorities and declared asylum following US and International law. Since that time, she built a life in St Charles County. For seven years she followed every law, attended every check-in, and integrated into our community.

In January of this year, she attended a regular immigration check-in. She was then accused of a shoplifting charge and detained. We now know that charge was falsely applied. ICE knows this charge was falsely applied. Yet five months later she is still in a cramped Texas cell, often without a bed, awaiting deportation to Uganda - a country she has never been to before.

So what do I want from this council? Well a month ago this council unanimously agreed to a partnership with ICE. We have earned some capital with them. I want every single member of this council to take time in the next two weeks to call ICE. Request her release. Show people like me that ICE has dignity and honor to release someone who did everything right.

One call. One person. Two weeks.

References

1.  https://www.freearmande.com/
2. https://www.stlmag.com/news/armande-rhea-namegni-ice-phelps/

My name is David Veneziano, I’m a resident of District 7, and I’m the Democratic Candidate for Saint Charles County Executive.

One month ago, this body passed a 287(g) agreement with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Two weeks ago, Monica Balestreri asked this body to provide their justification and thought process for this choice. That justification has not been provided. I stand before you today to remind you that we still want to know why you made this choice and to remind you why many of us are still upset about it. My focus today is going to be on the police officers we (as St Charles citizens) were claiming to support, but have instead put in an extremely difficult situation.

Ryan Schwank [1], a former ICE trainer, testified before congress in February of this year. He testified that he was required to teach cadets to violate the US Constitution. He was forced to train on controlled documents that encouraged violations of liberties and was not allowed to retain copies for fear they would be released to the public. He also testified about the dismantling of the training department at ICE, slashing required training hours in half. This is the same training department meant to provide our county officers with valuable tools and lessons.

Just what are those lessons? The primary outcome of 287(g) programs across the country has been an increase in racial profiling [2]. While current ICE leadership has taken this to extreme levels by encouraging mass street arrests of anyone who looks darker than us, the theme of discrimination isn’t new. The UN called on Obama to end the program in 2014 and again in 2022 during the Biden administration [3,4].

The result to police forces has been a decrease in trust from the public, less cooperation or reporting of crimes by minorities, and police departments going millions over budget supporting this “free” program [5,6]. Our police officers have worked too hard to build trust, only to have it dashed away to support a program that is beyond redemption.

It is important to remember that 287(g) agreements do not have to wait for expiration. They can be terminated at any time, by either party, without penalty [7]. I encourage the council to act on this now.

(In the last 30 seconds I asked the council to look into the case of Armande Rhea Namegni. More details on her case can be found here https://www.freearmande.com/)

References

1. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-whistleblower-and-former-ice-attorney-calls-agent-training-deficient-defective-and-broke
2. https://www.aclu.org/news/immigrants-rights/un-racial-justice-experts-call-on-biden-to-end-the-287g-program#:~:text=Johnston%20County%20Sheriff%20Steve%20Bizzell,administration%20needs%20to%20abandon%20it.
3. https://docs.un.org/en/CERD/C/USA/CO/7-9
4. https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/3987995?v=pdf
5. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/287g-program-immigration/
6. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-agricultural-and-applied-economics/article/effects-of-immigration-policy-on-business-creation-a-study-of-the-effects-of-287g-mandates/E6BEDE7EE99F52E71D0FAE7EB89DE1BE
7. https://www.sccmo.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/16465?fileID=48069