Butler no longer a ‘Sanctuary County’ after vote by prison board

As of today, Butler is no longer a “Sanctuary County” for illegal immigrants.

The vote was unanimous at the Government Center. Members of the prison board say it was an important and necessary vote to terminate Butler County’s status as a sanctuary county.

It was put to action because of a proposal by state Rep. Stephenie Scialabba, who learned about the sanctuary status through a constituent.

Butler was listed as a sanctuary county because it had written policies not to honor detainer requests from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

The proposal says Butler County encourages collaboration with ICE.

According to the Center for Immigration Studies, Butler was listed with 16 other counties in the state.

Scialabba said being designated as a sanctuary county was a calling card for crime.

“They come here, they think this is a safe place to commit crimes. And it is not,” Scialabba said. “It’s a safe place to live here and work here and we welcome you. We want immigrants here, that’s what our country’s about. But you have to come here legally, you can’t come here and think we won’t cooperate with ICE.”

Click here for information and resources for Pennsylvania immigrants.

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