On Jan. 22, the Butler County Sheriff’s Department partnered with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement during an enforcement action in Cranberry Township. Butler deputies were acting as immigration agents under the 287(g) agreement Sheriff Mike Slupe signed in June 2025.

Before the agreement was approved, Commissioner Kevin Boozel raised concerns about higher insurance costs to taxpayers. Groups like the ACLU have warned that 287(g) exposes counties to higher insurance costs and “inevitable lawsuits,” with taxpayers — not ICE — left to pay the bill. Sheriff Slupe has acknowledged that the county will not be reimbursed for the costs associated with this work.

Across Pennsylvania, a line is being drawn. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has promised to prosecute abusive ICE officers under constitutional and federal law. That matters here: deputies acting under 287(g) are not protected from liability. Nationwide, 287(g) has cost communities millions in lawsuits, causing counties to terminate their agreements.

Without safeguards to prevent wrongful detention, civil rights violations or harm to citizens, deputizing local officers as immigration agents puts the public and taxpayers at risk. Sheriff Slupe allowed Butler County to enter this agreement without public input and seemingly without fully accounting for the safety, legal and financial risks residents will bear. Butler County should terminate the 287(g) agreement before taxpayers are forced to pay for its consequences.

Nikki Ekas,

Summit Township