Jenkintown Borough Council approved a policy outlining the Jenkintown Police Department’s stance on illegal immigration on September 29, and according to WHYY, immigrant rights advocates and community members are pushing back on the new measure.
The approved order states that local police cannot enforce immigration laws or call ICE on victims, witnesses, juveniles or if someone is stopped for a traffic violation. It also instructs police to notify ICE under certain conditions, including if a person is arrested for a crime and is “believed to be in violation of immigration laws,” or if the police chief directs an officer to notify ICE.
Immigrant rights advocates believe the policy allows police to assist ICE agents without judicial warrants. You can read the full policy here.
“The illegal immigration [policy] was just clarifying what the stance is and what our role is in any immigration enforcement, which is we are not involved in any immigration enforcement,” Police Chief Thomas Scott said at the meeting.
Chief Scott and mayor Gabriel Lerman told WHYY that they are working to revise the policy, though no timeline is available.
“The Jenkintown Borough Police Department doesn’t have the authority to enforce immigration law. So that’s not something that they would need to be directly involved in. So our community feels that immigrants are important,” Lerman told WHYY. “We don’t want to create a policy that makes immigrants feel afraid to come to Jenkintown, whether that’s to live here or visit here.”
In related news, dozens of residents pressed the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners to adopt a welcoming policy and to limit local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement during their November 13 meeting.
Steven Heath, a retired police professional from Cheltenham Township, told the board that “all that work is being decimated by the indiscriminate removal operations committed by ICE,” adding that aggressive enforcement erodes community trust and makes victims less likely to report crimes.
Other commenters described children witnessing detentions, workers avoiding morning commuter rails, and calls for the county to make a values statement that would tell immigrant neighbors they belong.
Commissioners did not take formal action to adopt a county‑wide welcoming ordinance at the meeting. The Presiding Commissioner said the office of immigrant affairs and county staff would follow up with municipal and law enforcement partners, and invited further community engagement on the issue.
Cheltenham Township issued a “welcome policy” in late October.
For all the latest news, follow us on Facebook or sign up for Glenside Local’s “Daily Buzz” newsletter here.