The Southold Town Board spent an hour Tuesday afternoon beginning to shape how the town should respond to future federal immigration enforcement actions, focusing less on whether to adopt the proposed OLA legislation and more on what protocols, communications and police procedures should be in place regardless of whether the measure ultimately becomes law.

Calling the special work session a starting point ahead of the board’s Aug. 11 work session and regular meeting, Supervisor Al Krupski said the board was attempting to reconcile recommendations from the town’s Public Safety Task Force with a separate list of consensus recommendations developed with Town Attorney Benjamin Johnson.

“We’re not going to resolve everything or fix everything today,” Krupski said. “We wanted to have a special work session to kind of kick off these recommendations.”

Mapping out a strategy

The discussion centered on how Southold police should respond when ICE or another outside law enforcement agency conducts an operation in town, how verified information should be communicated to schools, hospitals and elected officials, whether a permanent community task force should be established, and how to reassure residents without spreading misinformation.

Councilwoman Kate Stevens said she viewed the discussion as addressing “protocols,” “oversight” and “communication,” asking the board to identify gaps between the Police Department’s current response and what residents expect. Councilwoman Alexa Suess agreed, saying the town first needed to define “our role” and “our responsibility as police commissioners.”

“I think having our officers on the scene responding is crucial,” Suess said. “They’re there as a calming measure. They are there to be there and be present with body cameras on. They are there to neither obstruct nor assist, but they are present. And I think having that response is really important.”

(Clockwise from top left: Supervisor Al Krupski, Councilwoman Alexa Suess, Councilman Brian Mealy, Councilwoman Kate Stevens, Police Chief Steve Grattan, beside Town Attorney Ben Johnson, and Councilwoman Anne Smith. Chris Francescani photo)

Police Chief Steve Grattan told the board his department has already drafted a new “outside agency procedure” that would apply not only to ICE but to any outside law enforcement agency operating within Southold.

Under the draft policy, officers would generally respond to reported enforcement actions when public safety concerns exist, while recognizing there are circumstances, such as undercover investigations or surveillance operations, where police presence could interfere with another agency’s work.

“If it’s a situation that could become contentious or likely to have some sort of confrontation, then this procedure directs our officers to be present and to assist in peacekeeping efforts,” Grattan said. He added that officers would also attempt to de-escalate confrontations between federal agents and members of the public.

Verification before notification

Board members also explored how the town should verify reports of immigration enforcement before notifying schools, hospitals or other institutions. Krupski stressed the importance of avoiding false alarms, recalling an unfounded report earlier this year that immigration agents were at Greenport School. Grattan said confirmation would depend on the level of cooperation from the outside agency and existing Police Department notification procedures, which already require major incidents to move quickly through the chain of command to the supervisor and police commissioners.

Stevens suggested streamlining that communication chain, while Suess argued the process should begin with a 911 call or police report that is then verified before broader notifications are made.

Councilwoman Anne Smith, drawing on her experience as an educator, said schools may need to activate their own safety protocols before an incident is fully confirmed, depending on the circumstances.

“My experience in the school has been when the police department has been notified of a potential issue that could affect dismissal, arrival, anything going on in the schools, we are notified, and then we have protocols about what we do next until we hear otherwise.”

Permanent task force?

The discussion also turned to whether a permanent community advisory body should continue the work of the Public Safety Task Force. Stevens suggested such a group could review police responses after incidents and recommend improvements, while Mealy proposed drawing members from the town’s existing Police Advisory Committee and Anti-Bias Task Force, along with school representatives. Smith suggested including nonprofit organizations, clergy and other community partners who work directly with vulnerable residents.

Councilman Brian Mealy said community members’ testimony before the task force underscored the fear many residents feel surrounding federal immigration enforcement, even as police call volume has increased rather than declined.

Grattan said he has no data showing residents are avoiding calling police, though he acknowledged some people may still be reluctant. Mealy praised the board for taking time to gather public input rather than acting quickly.

“We have to make the best decision to keep everybody safe,” Mealy said. “We’re trying to engage the community in a thoughtful way.”

Task force members recommendations

At the heart of the debate is whether town police response and town policy response to future immigration enforcement actions should be internal policy or should be codified in local law—which would require a public hearing before any vote.

The proposed OLA legislation has been substantially narrowed since it was first drafted in January (The most recent version is at the bottom of the .pdf above). All three of the OLA drafts explicitly recognize federal authority to enforce immigration laws.

The original proposal envisioned an active role for Southold police during federal immigration enforcement actions, directing the department to investigate reports of agents impersonating law enforcement, verify federal credentials, coordinate with federal agencies, establish specialized protocols and training, and maintain detailed records. Successive revisions stripped away most of those responsibilities. By the latest May draft, the legislation primarily requires reporting immigration enforcement activity to town officials, establishes a community task force and gives local police the authority—but not the obligation—to request identification from unidentified individuals engaged in immigration enforcement.

Many of the recommendations submitted by five members of the Public Safety Task Force envision a broader operational role for Southold police than the latest May draft, one that in several respects resembles the more expansive police role contemplated in the original January proposal. Their recommendations call for Southold police to deploy officers to any verified ICE or Homeland Security enforcement action and remain on scene for the duration, notify the town supervisor when federal immigration enforcement activity is confirmed, provide reports to the Town Board that would be available to the public upon request, and state that STPD “may request identification from any individuals engaged in immigration enforcement activities.” The report also says a visible police presence could help verify agent identity and warrants, facilitate communication with detainees’ families and help ensure public safety during federal enforcement operations.

Town Attorney Benjamin Johnson identified broad consensus around several policy objectives—including communication protocols, additional de-escalation training, public outreach and officers’ existing authority to request identification—but questioned whether those recommendations should be enacted as local law. In a June 24 letter to the task force, Johnson wrote that “reasonable views” existed on whether the measures should instead be adopted as Police Department policy, citing “what practical effect a law without an enforcement mechanism would have, beyond potentially confusing the public as to what is and is not enforceable, and certain constitutional questions that remain unresolved.” He also urged the task force to consider a warning from Rep. Nick LaLota that municipalities adopting policies viewed as restricting cooperation with federal immigration authorities could risk losing federal funding.