Commissioners declare Kittitas County isn’t ‘sanctuary jurisdiction’

Calling out the “current treacherous landscape” of conflicting state and federal laws, Kittitas County commissioners said the county was not a “sanctuary jurisdiction” and it would not get in the way of federal authorities who were “conducting lawful operations.”

Commissioners unanimously approved a proclamation Tuesday in a move officials said they hoped would clear up any confusion on the status of Kittitas County.

Controversy over the county’s views on immigration erupted in late May after Kittitas County, along with other counties and jurisdictions across the country, were identified by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as “defying federal immigration law” in a list published on the department’s website.

The department said the list included “cities, counties and states that are deliberately and shamefully obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws endangering American communities.”

The list included dozens of counties across Washington, including Kittitas, as well as the cities of Yakima, Seattle, Tacoma, Everett and Olympia.

Earlier this month, Kittitas County Sheriff Clay Myers asked commissioners to approve a proclamation to declare that Kittitas County was not a “sanctuary county.”

Commissioners reviewed a sanctuary jurisdiction proclamation that was proposed by Myers, but said a more thorough review was needed before they would support it.

The board approved a revised proclamation on a 3-0 vote at their June 17 meeting.

The declaration says the county is not a “sanctuary jurisdiction supporting evasion of federal immigration enforcement actions.”

Commissioner Brett Wachsmith said it came down to the safety of citizens.

“Personally, being a combat veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, I’ve seen evil,” he said. “I know that it’s been confirmed that we have terrorists that have come through our southern border.”

“I also worry about my daughter’s future and I believe that we’re safer by not ensuring we’re a sanctuary for illegal immigration, and I think there are a lot of ways to do so,” he added.

“We should follow those laws. I think we should also care about who’s entering our country,” Wachsmith said.

Commissioner Cory Wright stressed that Kittitas County is a political subdivision of the state of Washington.

“We still have to follow the laws of the state of Washington. So we’re in a tricky spot at times,” Wright said.

“But I think from a ‘How can we act?’ position as a law enforcement and prosecuting attorney, and the board, which passes and approves the budgets to support their operations, we want to see the rule of law followed,” he added.

“That also means that we want to make sure that every member of our community is treated respectfully and is always at the forefront of our actions as elected representatives of the people of Kittitas County,” Wright said.

He said he hoped the proclamation would provide clarity for residents on a confusing subject.

“We support our sheriff. We support our prosecuting attorney. And we do expect that our federal and state laws will be enforced to the best of our ability,” he said.

“I want to see our state and federal governments figure this out,” Wright added.

Commissioner Laura Osiadacz noted that they had all taken an oath to uphold laws as elected officials.

“I think it’s just a really difficult time,” she said, and added there were conflicts between the state and federal government “which we are stuck kind of in the middle a little bit.”

The proclamation said Kittitas County will prosecute criminals “irrespective of their immigration status.”

In the pronouncement, commissioners also encouraged state and federal officials “to jointly develop an integrated system of immigration law enforcement to ensure that local jurisdictions have clear guidance for supporting law enforcement and public safety.”

The proclamation did not include some of the language that was in the first one proposed, including a passage that commissioners “proclaim that both state and federal officials and agencies have inappropriately divided, threatened and punished local jurisdictions as pawns in the dispute over immigration law enforcement, corroding public trust in government and reducing public safety.”

Also left out was a statement that Kittitas County had “experienced the murder of a deputy at the hands of a criminal alien and sustained the largest manhunt in state history to arrest another violent criminal alien.”