Plymouth passes anti-ICE policies restricting police cooperation, data sharing

Tim Dunn, Boston Herald on Apr 18, 2026

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BOSTON — Plymouth is the latest Massachusetts town to adopt a policy restricting local police cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, as a wave of legislation aimed at impeding the agency’s ability to conduct operations in the state comes out of Beacon Hill.

Town Meeting voters in Plymouth voted to adopt a citizen’s petition, called the “Plymouth Community Trust By-Law,” with 78 voting in favor and 60 opposing the measure, with three people abstaining. The motion was filed by Committee and Finance Committee Chair Joseph Lalley.

While presenting the citizen’s petition for debate at the April 11 Spring Town Meeting, petitioners argued that ICE operations in Plymouth have “created fear” and “disrupted lives” among the immigrant community, leading to what they call a distrust of local police.

“We’ve had conversations with religious and secular leaders in the immigrant communities and they’ve reported that many people, including many immigrants who are citizens, would simply look or sound like they came from another country,” said petitioner Peter Matlin.

“Unfortunately, the atmosphere of fear includes fear of the police. And this is because there is a widespread misperception in the immigrant community that the Plymouth Police and possibly other town officials are working with ICE,” he continued. “It (the bylaw) will ensure that all town residents can feel confident that the Plymouth Police Department is not an extension of ICE, and that they feel safe assisting police officers to enforce the law.”

Matlin went on to claim that another reason to support the policy is because it will help the town “avoid diverting scarce town resources to civil immigration enforcement.”

At the same meeting, voters overwhelmingly approved spending $50,000 to pay the costs of America’s Hometown Thanksgiving Celebration for the 250th Anniversary of the United States, another $50,000 for the July 4 celebrations, and $223,916 on just the costs covering design plans for a new Veterans Memorial Park, among other items.

The new policy bans all Plymouth police officers, town officials and employees from cooperating with ICE or any federal immigration agents, communicating with immigration officers about the legal status of individuals, or performing the functions of an immigration officer. It also prohibits town employees, including police, from inquiring about an individual’s immigration status, and restricts local law enforcement from assisting ICE in immigration raids or enforcement operations, and requires Plymouth Police to ignore ICE detainer requests, among other measures.

“Town employees and officials may not inquire about the immigration status of any person with whom they have contact,” the policy states, adding that local law enforcement is not to comply with ICE requests for information on a suspect or for access to records facilities, unless a judicial warrant is provided.

“Unless ICE demonstrates a judicial warrant issued by a judicial court based on probable cause, no officer or employee of a town law enforcement agency shall respond to any ICE or CBP notification request seeking information about an individual’s incarceration status, length of detention, home address, work address, personal information, hearing information, or pending release,” the new town law says. “No officer or employee of a town law enforcement agency shall allow ICE or CBP agents access to or use of facilities, records/databases, booking lists, or individuals in custody either in person or via telephone or videoconference.”

These restrictions on local law enforcement have already been in place at the Plymouth Police Department for nearly a decade, as confirmed not so long ago.

An almost identical policy was originally taken up during a lengthy Plymouth Select Board meeting in January. At that time, Selectman Kevin Canty led the select board and dozens of town residents through hours of debate, discussion and presentations, only to be informed by Chief Dana Flynn that it mirrors the department’s policy that’s been in place since 2017. Only Flynn has the authority to change the policy for Plymouth police officers, which he indicated at the meeting he would not. The department’s standing policy is based off a 2017 state law prohibiting Massachusetts police officers from enforcing civil immigration detainers.

Plymouth is the seat of Plymouth County, which is home to the sheriff’s office with the only remaining 287(g) agreement with ICE in the entire state. Under this contract, state and county staff are deputized to act as immigration agents.

Residents of Yarmouth plan on voting on a similar measure at their town election on May 19.