Press Democrat, 1/21/26

Sonoma County Supervisor Chris Coursey says all communication made by county law enforcement with federal immigration authorities should end, a move that would eliminate the limited notifications made by the jail in certain cases — a political shift that puts Coursey at odds with the stance of fellow board members. 

Coursey issued his call in a Tuesday statement in which he lambasted the Trump administration’s sweeping domestic immigration enforcement crackdown, casting Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, as “dangerous” and akin to an “armed force” wielded against communities that fall out of favor.

“Enough,” Coursey wrote.

[Read more at the Press Democrat]

He recounted his support for the existing Sheriff’s Office policy that honors certain ICE requests, including in cases involving inmates convicted of violent or serious offenses, which comports with state law that generally limits such notifications.

“After all, these are convicted criminals who have shown — sometimes repeatedly — that they are a danger to our community,” Coursey wrote. “I believed that ICE played a part in protecting our community.

“I can no longer believe that. I can no longer support it. I see with my own eyes, on a daily basis, how ICE makes communities more dangerous across our country.”

He stopped short in the statement of calling for official action and he did not name Sheriff Eddie Engram, an elected official who sets policy for his department and the jail it operates.

But Coursey ended his statement with another punctuating, “Enough.”

“Sonoma County should end our cooperation with ICE.”

His message was welcomed this week by local immigrant advocacy groups and leaders, who have pushed the county and Sheriff’s Office for more than a year to cut off all ties with federal immigration authorities.

It is unlikely to spur any major shift in direction from the board, which until this week was unanimous in its support of the Sheriff’s Office policy.

“It took courage to realize that immigrant communities are not exaggerating when they say that they are terrified to be potentially reported to ICE,” said Renee Saucedo, a lead organizer with the Sanctuary Coalition of Sonoma County. “We’re very pleased, and we’re looking forward to the others also shifting their position so that everyone’s human rights are protected regardless of their immigration status or their criminal history.”

Coursey said he was moved to speak out in the wake of the surge of ICE operations under Trump, including in Los Angeles, Chicago and Minneapolis, where a federal agent this month shot and killed a woman who’d stopped her SUV in the street while observing ICE operations in a neighborhood. Video from the incident appeared to show her trying to drive away from the scene, but Trump officials said she’d tried to run over the officer who shot her and called her “a domestic terrorist.” They also ruled out an investigation into the shooting.

“ICE just does not qualify as a legitimate law enforcement agency to me anymore,” Coursey said in an interview Tuesday.

Several of his board colleagues have been similarly critical of federal immigration tactics, but Coursey said he did not expect his view to sway the board and added he has no plans to try to change their minds or the county’s direction.

“I’m not doing this to put that pressure on them. We’ve all got to follow our own conscience,” he said.

Going back to the first Trump presidency, advocates have pushed county officials to enact a sanctuary policy that prohibits any communication between ICE and the Sonoma County jail. These efforts have intensified as Trump, in his second term, has ratcheted up his mass deportation campaign and immigration agents have pursued increasingly aggressive and legally questionable tactics.

There have been rolling demonstrations outside the jail and in board chambers, and activists even staged a weeklong hunger strike last August.

[Read more at the Press Democrat]

Saucedo, the sanctuary coalition organizer, accused federal agents of “conducting repressive gestapo-like operations.”

Those caught up in the dragnet face new and potentially extralegal consequences, she noted.

“Nobody deserves to be sent to El Salvador to be tortured or rot in a cell,” she said.

Whether or not Coursey intends to take further action, “his taking the stance is what’s important. He is modeling for the other supervisors,” Saucedo said.

Saucedo added that the local sanctuary coalition has requested a meeting with Coursey’s staff to encourage next steps.

Chipping away at a still-solidified board majority will not be easy, however. Only a handful of municipalities statewide have the kind of communication ban that advocates seek to have in place in Sonoma County.

Officials have publicly worried that any such move could make Sonoma County even more of a target for the administration, which has already sought to pull back tens of millions of dollars from local governments over county and city policies that favor diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI.

“This is a really complicated issue that we’re all trying to navigate as best we can,” said board Chair Rebecca Hermosillo, a daughter of Mexican immigrants. “I know it’s hard on everybody, especially the immigrant community that is afraid of showing up to school and to work.”

While taking some other steps to codify and fund protections and support for immigrant and undocumented county residents, supervisors have resisted the call to support a full ban on communicating with ICE out of the jail. They have repeatedly emphasized that they do not have control over the decisionmaking of the sheriff, but have also generally voiced support for what they see as a fair and balanced approach by the department.

Local law enforcement agencies don’t participate in immigration enforcement, but federal authorities can request certain information about inmates in the jail, which ICE can use to coordinate arrests, often as they are being released. State law limits what can be shared and how federal agents operate inside detention facilities.

Sheriff Engram has implemented restrictions that go beyond state law requirements – no longer responding to ICE about people with offenses that fall on the line between misdemeanor and felony and requiring a conviction rather than simply charges. Engram refused to loosen that policy at federal officials’ request during an October meeting with a new ICE supervisor overseeing removals for the region. Still, he has stopped short of cutting contact altogether.

“The Sheriff remains committed to a narrow, legally permissible approach focused only on individuals convicted of serious or violent felonies. That position balances public safety, compliance with state law, and the need to maintain trust with immigrant communities,” Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Sgt. Juan Valencia said in response to a list of questions.

As for Coursey’s statement, Engram respects his “right to express his views and understands that elected officials may reassess their positions over time,” Valencia said.

“While the Sheriff does not agree with every aspect of that conclusion, he views it as part of a broader policy discussion” Valencia said.

And while the sheriff “values input from the Board of Supervisors and community leaders,” Valencia added, “operational law enforcement policy is set by the Sheriff under state law,” and “any future changes would be driven by legal developments or clear public safety impacts, not by reaction to headlines.”

Supervisor David Rabbitt said he supports Engram, “who is making sure he is using public safety as the guide.”

“You support the law or you don’t,” Rabbitt said.

He added that ICE has existed as a law enforcement agency for a long time and said its officers have been placed in an “unfortunate” position by higher ups in the agency and administration.

“You want every law enforcement officer to have the best practices and ensure the public safety,” Rabbitt said. “I think the majority, even on the ICE officers’ side, are trying to do that.”

Supervisors David Rabbitt, left, and Chris Coursey attend the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors meeting at the Sonoma County Administration Building in Sonoma Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press-Democrat)

Other board members aligned more closely with Coursey’s sentiments, if not his conclusion.

“He’s right,” Hermosillo said, referring to Coursey. “ICE is lawless.”

But that assessment does not change the board majority’s position supporting the sheriff’s policy, she noted. Hermosillo said she and Supervisor Lynda Hopkins remain focused on their work as co-chairs of a committee formed last year to address the needs of local immigrants.

The board has directed funds for immigrant support services, implemented training for county staff and is working towards the implementation of two separate policies that would restrict the use of facial coverings by law enforcement officers seeking to hide their identities and prevent ICE and other federal agencies from using land or buildings controlled by the county for activities like surveillance, arrests or similar operations.

“We don’t need to do it through a statement, we don’t need to do it through a sanctuary ordinance, we don’t need to do it through threatening the sheriff to withhold funds, we are doing the work our constituents have elected us to do,” Hermosillo said.

Supervisor James Gore, in a text, said he “abhorred” ICE’s escalation but supported the board committee’s work and the sheriff’s policy.

Hermosillo and Hopkins expect to provide an update on the committee’s work at the board’s Jan. 27 meeting.

“Everything that is within our power to direct, we have directed. I do feel that we made our priorities clear, and we’re doing everything within our power to safeguard the community,” Hopkins said.

Saucedo said she supports all the supervisors’ efforts so far but that advocates won’t stop also pushing for a full ban on information sharing with ICE.

“We need all of it. They have to be bold during these extreme times,” Saucedo said. Coursey’s statement, “further energizes our efforts. That is clear.”

You can reach senior reporter Marisa Endicott at 707-521-5470 or marisa.endicott@pressdemocrat.com. On X @marisaendicott and Facebook @InYourCornerTPD.

You can reach Staff Writer Emma Murphy at 707-521-5228 or emma.murphy@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MurphReports.