Dozens of residents packed a town select board meeting in Wells last night to weigh in on the police department's decision to enter into a formal agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Wells is the only police department in Maine with an active agreement through the 287(g) program, which grants local police officers the authority to enforce certain aspects of federal immigration law.
The issue was not on the scheduled agenda Tuesday night, but drew a standing-room only crowd during a public comment section that at times devolved into shouting.
Resident Robert Lavoie said he worried any partnership with ICE - an agency at the forefront of President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration policies - could damage the town's reputation.
"Those of us in the hospitality business have worked long and hard, in some cases, for generations, to build Wells' reputation as a friendly and welcoming town," he said. "And that could all go away in a flash if something goes wrong in one of these deportation related incidents."
Other critics said they were concerned about instilling unnecessary fear in local immigrant families, and potential taxpayer liability if police cooperation with ICE triggers lawsuits targeting the town.
But resident Cat Curley said she supports the program as a way to give officers more training.
"I feel very confident in saying that I believe, without a doubt, that any training provided to this agency wouldn't be abused or used incorrectly," she said. "Because the ethics and the morals of our Wells police [have] proven that."
Resident John Stanton said he supports more training in general, just not with ICE.
"We should make no mistake, ICE Enforcement and Removal training is about detain and deport, not skills or professional development training," he said.
The meeting at times turned heated, as one man stormed out after shouting about immigrants committing crimes.
The select board did not indicate what action - if any - it would take on the agreement.
The Monmouth and Winthrop police departments recently rescinded their applications last month, citing local pushback.
Nationally, ICE has leaned on 287(g) agreements to increase the manpower available for immigration enforcement, including a recent weeklong operation in Florida that resulted in over 1,100 arrests.
