The Wells Police Department is pausing its agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, while state lawmakers consider a bill that would ban state and local agencies from entering into such contracts.
Chief Jo-Ann Putnam told the town select board last night she would take a wait and see approach, and tried to address local concerns about partnering with ICE.
"At no point was there ever any intent on doing proactive immigration enforcement," Putnam said.
Wells was the only town in Maine with an active agreement through ICE's 287(g) program, which trains local officers to enforce certain aspects of federal immigration law.
The decision drew strong pushback from some residents, who said it would erode trust in the department and implicate the town in the Trump administration's aggressive immigration policies.
Others said they supported giving local officers more authority and training to handle immigration enforcement.
