The law is the law.
That simple statement summarizes the opinions expressed recently by the three elected sheriffs in Belmont, Marshall, and Ohio counties when addressing immigration control along Interstates 70 and 470, and when working with agents from the federal ICE agency.
Sheriffs James Zusack, Mike Dougherty, and Nelson Croft all have expressed recently that state codes and federal laws provide them with all the guidance they need when apprehending motorists and/or passengers who are unable to provide proof of U.S. citizenship. Marshall County’s Sheriff Dougherty, in fact, released the following statement after cooperating with ICE agents at the end of January.
The Marshall County Sheriff’s Office was notified in advance by ICE that their agents would be operating in our area. In coordination with federal authorities, I granted permission for agents to use the Sheriff’s Office booking room to process the individuals before their transfer to the Northern Regional Jail.
My office remains committed to upholding the law and ensuring the safety and security of all Marshall County residents. We will continue to cooperate with federal, state, and local law enforcement as appropriate, and we are dedicated to maintaining open communication with our community regarding law enforcement activities.
On the same day, Sheriff Croft was forced to address a social media rumor that ICE agents were operational in Ohio County.
“I, myself, saw a lot of misinformation on Facebook on that day, and I knew it wasn’t true because I know the proper protocol and the folks with Immigration Control have allowed it during my career,” he explained. “I know they contacted Sheriff (Mike) Dougherty down in Marshall County, but we did not receive the same phone call.
“I’ve worked with ICE during my career as a deputy and as Sheriff, and because of the interstate traffic that goes through the county, we’re in communication with the Pittsburgh office frequently.”
Sheriff Zusack, a member of the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office since the early 1990s, offered a similar perspective.
“No matter who the sheriff has been here, we’ve always followed the laws on the books,” he said. “The only time it’s been a big topic was when a passenger jumped over the interstate wall and rain down toward the Blaine Bridge. That’s when Fred Thompson was our sheriff (2005-2013), and we never did find the man.
“But no matter what, we’ll enforce the laws on the books,” he said. “That’s what we do and will always do.”
Follow By Example
Between 30,000 and 60,000 vehicles travel along the Interstate 70 corridor on any given day, according to estimates compiled by the Federal Highways Administration, so that’s why patrolling the freeways in Ohio County always has been and will be a priority for Sheriff Croft and his deputies.
Trafficking – of drugs and of human beings – is unfortunately prevalent today in the Northeast, and that’s why several law enforcement agencies in the Upper Ohio Valley receive annual federal HIDTA (high intensity drug trafficking area) funding. Enforcing immigration laws, Croft said, comes with patrolling local highways and interstates.
“There’s been two traffic stops in the past few weeks where occupants of the vehicle were in the country unlawfully. The deputies did their due diligence and contacted Immigration,” Ohio County’s sheriff reported. “And they were detained the same way that we’ve been doing it during my 33-year career. It’s nothing new.
“Because we have Interstate 70 and 470, there have been several situations where our deputies have encountered motorists and passengers who are here illegally. I-70 is a major corridor to the East Coast, so we don’t expect the enforcement that we carry out to change that path anytime soon. I’m sure there’s a lot more that travel through without getting pulled over.”
Croft served as a deputy under the late-great and former sheriff Tom Burgoyne, a proud Democrat who took immigration control seriously during his two, four-year teams. Not only did Burgoyne instigate and assist ICE agents with the raid and closure of a Mexican restaurant – Nogales – in downtown Wheeling, he communicated frequently with the Immigration Control office in Pittsburgh.
“As a deputy back then, I worked criminal interdiction on the interstates, and I arrested a lot of fugitives. Not everyone was carrying dope, but there were a lot of fugitives I arrested for being in the country illegally,” Croft explained. “That’s aways been a part of my job while patrolling the interstates, and every time it started with a traffic infraction.
“When you are pulling someone over, you don’t know who’s going to be in the vehicle,” he said. “I stopped a van one time because it was speeding, and when I walked up to the driver’s side and looked in, I saw people everywhere. I believe there were 14 to 16 people in that van, and not one of them was a legal resident. It turned out to be human trafficking.”
Ohio County’s sheriff also revealed during an interview on The River Network’s “Novotney Now” radio program that he’s been asked to denounce ICE and immigration control.
Croft’s answer was simple.
“That’s not something we’ll be doing anytime soon. We’ll enforce the laws like we do with everything else. We will assist any law enforcement agency in Ohio County that’s acting in a lawful constitutional manner. That’s it,” he said. “If something’s being done against the Constitution, then, obviously, we would not assist.
“Everything that’s taken place involving ICE has been constitutional. I’m not going to get caught up in the politics. That’s not my job. My job is to protect everyone in Ohio County.”
