Lansdowne bans collaboration agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Lansdowne Borough Council has adopted an ordinance prohibiting collaboration agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

According to borough officials, the legislation, passed unanimously on Aug. 19, is possibly the first of its kind in Delaware County. Other municipalities have adopted resolutions but have not passed laws prohibiting local law enforcement departments from entering into a collaboration agreement with ICE under its 287(g) program, officials said.

The bill:

• Prohibits the borough’s departments, employees, police officers, contractors and agents from voluntarily entering into, renewing or participating in 287(g) agreements
• Restricts use of funds, property, personnel, data systems and other resources from being used in civil immigration enforcement procedures
• Bans the borough from accepting reimbursement, training and any other resources to participate in a 287(g) agreement or other federal civil immigration enforcement programs

The ordinance also ensures that Lansdowne continues to comply with federal and state law, including honoring judicial warrants, court orders and subpoenas.

Lansdowne constable signed collaboration agreement with ICE a year ago

Borough officials initiated the process to pass the ordinance and codify its opposition to voluntarily working with ICE even as an independently elected constable in the borough is one of just two local law enforcement departments in Philadelphia’s collar counties to have an active collaboration agreement with ICE.

Jerome Fletcher, the Lansdowne constable, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Fletcher signed a memorandum of agreement with ICE in the summer of 2025.

In Pennsylvania, constables are elected to six-year terms and are governed by state law. The law enforcement officers have the power to make arrests without a warrant for a disturbance of peace. They also work with magistrate district judges and can serve civil papers, among other duties.

The Lansdowne constable’s agreement is under the program’s task force model, which provides training and funds to local law enforcement agencies and deputizes officers to carry out certain immigration enforcement duties.

As of Aug. 21, the agreement is active, according to ICE records.

According to U.S. Census data, immigrants make up 12.7% of the population of the tiny borough that spans just 1.2 square miles — more than 1.5 times the percentage of foreign-born residents in Pennsylvania.

Jessica M. Pointer, president of the Lansdowne Borough Council, told WHYY News that the constable “is in no way associated with our governing body.” However, she said, borough officials absorbed “the brunt of concerns” for residents who were opposed to collaborating with ICE and the constable’s participation in the 287(g) program.

“Although people understood it was no association, they still were concerned about their neighbors, their friends, whoever had to deal with ICE as an immigrant,” Pointer said. “This ordinance … says that our staff, our police department, or anybody a part of volunteering or governing or leading in this municipality could not offer our resources, or there will be some sort of … disciplinary action.”

Ordinance is ‘legally binding’

The borough had passed a resolution outlining officials’ stance on collaboration with ICE earlier this year but wanted to enact legislation that was “legally binding” and not just “performative,” Pointer said.

“People live in fear every day of what immigration officers will do to their family, breaking up their family and not being able to sustain their household,”she said. “This sends a clear message that these individuals that live in our town know that council, the governing body staff are looking out for their best interests as best as they can within their authority.”

The ordinance does not apply to the constable because that position does not work for the borough.

Other municipalities throughout the Philadelphia area have passed both resolutions and ordinances stipulating non-cooperation with ICE, with Montgomery County codifying its position in March that it would not enter into any 287(g) agreements.

Editor’s note: This article was updated to reflect that the constable does not work for the county.