Rockland City Council turns down federal border patrol grant
ROCKLAND — “We are who we hang out with,” said Councilor Valli Geiger. “We’ve worked really hard in Rockland to have an excellent reputation. I think it hurts us to partner with such an organization.”
In a 1 to 4 vote (Mayor Lisa Westkaemper voting in favor of the grant) April 13, the Rockland City Council refused to accept a $7,000 grant from the federal Customs and Border Protection that would have financed additional overtime pay for Rockland police officers.
The Council convened April 13 via Zoom, a teleconference platform used by many Midcoast municipalities during the pandemic.
Police Chief Chris Young discussed the grant offering during the April 6 agenda-setting meeting, presenting it as an opportunity to put more bicycle and pedestrian officers onto Rockland streets. And, though Council members stated enthusiasm for the benefits to the city, as well as their high regard for Chief Young, the reputation of the funding source could not be ignored.
In Limestone, the tone of the town changed with the increase in border patrol, according to former Rockland Council member and Maine State Representative Elizabeth Dickerson.
Dickerson told the Rockland city Council during the April 13 meeting that she served as town manager for Limestone from January to August 2019. During that time, her police chief approached her with a similar border patrol grant, she said.
Like Rockland, the Limestone grant would pay for police shifts without increasing the cost to residents. Wanting to support her police officers, as well as to combat a growing drug problem, she said she agreed to hear a grant presentation.
The presentation contained racial biases, she said, and after further drilling of the agent, Dickerson said she learned that the shifts covered would have to occur after normal shift hours.
“The only costs which would be covered by the grant would have to be directly related to border patrol activities,” she said. “For example...if we wanted to stop someone who had an Arizona license plate.”
Despite Dickerson’s warnings, she said, the Limestone Select Board approved the grant. Though the police officers gained extra money for working extra shifts, the police budget overall didn’t decrease, and there was no increase in the policing of community issues, such as domestic violence and child abuse.
“Another result of accepting this grant was that the tenor and feel of the town changed dramatically afterward. We had border patrol officers in those white and green pickup trucks on either end of town, constantly. They became a presence. Some residents might appreciate that, but what you may not have considered, is that there is an erosion of local control that comes with this presence.
“Border Patrol stepped in and over my office. Drug busts increased, which was encouraging for the residents, but it was not clear whether the busts were cleaning up existing drug traffic, or if traffic was increasing in an escalating drug war between dealers and border patrol.
“Given that my chief and I were increasingly losing control over drug-related policing activities, I could not determine what the answer was, but I can tell you that the tone of the town changed.”
Used with Homeland Security funds, “Operation Stone Garden,” in place since at least 2007, is for state and local law enforcement agencies, but with the caveat that information gathered by the localities would be shared with the border patrol.
Young learned of Operation Stone Garden when another law enforcement agency asked if Rockland PD would be interested in the program. According to Young, the agency explained to him that the money would be for increased border security with very broad parameters.
“Rockland would be considered a friendly force partner, available to receive funding to place additional officers on patrol shifts to increase our ability to proactively patrol the city,” he said during the April 13 Council meeting. “The caveat being that there had to be a border patrol nexus. Given the border that the Rockland Police Department is responsible for, I immediately thought of enhancing our community engagement.”
Rockland’s jurisdiction involves commercial and recreational boaters in the harbor, foot and bicycle patrol along Main Street, as well as extending those patrols into the neighborhoods.
“All of these initiatives would put an officer on or near our border for increased border security while building partnerships within the community,” he said. “These partnerships would allow us to gain public trust and confidence, which fosters information sharing. It helps us identify possible criminal activity going on that we may not otherwise be aware of.”
Such activities include child abuse and exploitation, drug trafficking, human trafficking, domestic violence, and other crimes that may go under-reported, or unreported altogether.
Still, Council members remained wary by the CBP’s past reputation. The current leader of Maine’s CBP is a former Laredo agent who allegedly took part in a Secret Shadow Facebook account, according to Geiger.
The page allegedly traded insults about people of color, immigrants, and refugees. Other councilors cited other histories of alleged border patrol abuses.
Though Councilor Nate Davis said he has great faith in the City’s staff and administration, this particular offer is “a bridge too far” for him to accept.
Said Councilor Ben Dorr, “I believe that the reason they [Chief Young and Fire Chief Chris Whytock] do such good work is because they have self-governance.”
Seven thousand dollars, said Dorr, is a meager price tag to be held to if, in the future, someone wants to hold something over Rockland’s head.
As devil’s advocate, Councilor Ed Glaser stated that some people might say that Rockland doesn’t want CBP protection against illegal border crossers.
“That’s not really what it’s about,” he said. “An organization like that has a choice in how you enforce the laws....And they have a long history of abuses in terms of how they enforce the laws. Are those really the people we want to align ourselves with? I don’t think so.”
Reach Sarah Thompson at news@penbaypilot.com
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