Pitcairn's agreement with ICE the topic of debate at council meeting
Some neighbors in Pitcairn said they are upset after learning the borough entered into an agreement for police to act as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
A 287(g) agreement gives Pitcairn police the power to enforce immigration laws and act as ICE agents. Community members voiced their concerns before council on Monday.
"Yes, this is land of the free, but come here legally," said one resident who supported the agreement.
"I am the result of immigration to America," another resident countered. "Pitcairn is named after and built by immigrants."
According to Pitcairn Borough Council President Thomas Dick Jr. and Police Chief Scott Farally, the agreement was signed in July. Some members of the council say they knew, but others say they didn't, only learning of it recently, like many residents.
"I've not known nothing about it until I seen it on the news," Councilman George Burkhardt said. "I do not think that's right and I told Scott that I do not think that's right and Scott said it was up to the mayor to tell us. I don't care who it's up to, we gotta know before."
Dick said the council doesn't govern the acts of the police department, and they can only vote to hire or fire.
"I don't know where this came to light that I gotta ask the borough for the operations of the police department," Farally said. "I don't. It's in the borough code."
Councilmember Lisa Petrosky asked for a vote to rescind the already-signed agreement, but it failed 5-2.
"We are creating this false narrative where we hate the police if we want to know how this process took place, and how we can have input into whether we want our police involved with ICE or not," said former councilman John Bova.
The Department of Homeland Security tells KDKA it has seen "tremendous success" in arresting "criminal illegal aliens" when partnering with local law enforcement.
