FORT MYERS, Fla. — On Thursday Governor Desantis said that Fort Myers will enter into an agreement with ICE or he’s prepared to intervene and suspend elected officials from office.
FOX 4 spoke with a Southwest Florida attorney who said the Governor is overstepping his authority.
Watch Fort Myers Community Correspondent Miyoshi Price's report:
This week residents have been showing strong emotions about what the three councilmembers did Monday night.
And now, an attorney and professor at FGCU says the governor can not remove a council member for how they voted.
"That hard-line approach from the governor generally is not accepted well." FGCU professor and attorney Pamella Seay says Monday's Fort Myers City Council vote was done correctly.
Councilwomen Diana Giraldo, Carolyn Watson, and Darla Bonk voted not to allow Fort Myers police to train with I.C.E. agents and be deputized to act as I.C.E. agents when they arrest illegal immigrants with criminal records.
"They [the councilmembers] did nothing illegal," says Seay. "It's purely optional. And if you take a look at the statute, that's what it says, they can opt into the program."
She's referring to the 287(g) program. At a Ward 6 meeting on Wednesday, councilwoman Darla Bonk had several questions about how it would work.
"If this was not voluntary, why was it even brought before the council to vote," says Bonk. "I still do not have that answer."
The vote ended in a tie. It drew criticism from the governor and Florida's attorney general.
FGCU Professor Peter Bergerson says the issue is more political than policy-based.
He says the governor can remove officials but typically requires serious malfeasance.
"A matter of threatened, and it's a matter of really strong arm pressure to have the council reverse their decision," says Bergerson.
He says those "No" votes made Fort Myers extremely visible because the immigration conversation is a national issue.
"It's a question of local control versus the agenda of the president and the agenda of the governor, what is in the best interest of what the city council sees as what their constituents want, and the potential that at least three of the members of the council see is the potential for abuse by using Fort Myers police as an agent for the ice officers." Bergerson said.
This decision will be revisited at an Emergency Meeting on Friday at 2 p.m.
"Is every city and every municipality, every county, everybody is going to come into line?" Sealy asked. "It's not likely. But this kind of encouragement, generally, doesn't work well."
