STOW — Stow Police Chief Michael Sallese said that federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents executed a detainer order for an individual in town this morning, and the Stow Police Department was not involved or notified beforehand.
“The Stow Police Department was not involved and had no prior notification that an enforcement action was taking place,” Sallese said in a statement.
Sallese said the department’s understanding is that the detainer was issued in response to an indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 case out of Concord District Court.
Sallese stated that the department does not participate in enforcing federal immigration policy, citing a 2017 Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruling.
“The Stow Police Department is not involved in immigration policy, as a 2017 state Supreme Judicial Court ruling, called Lunn vs. the Commonwealth, in which the court ruled that Massachusetts police officers cannot arrest and hold someone based solely on a federal immigration detainer, which is a civil matter,” Sallese said.
Sallese added that the department’s priority is ensuring the safety of the Stow community.
