The Bartow Police Department arrested a driver and passenger in July and charged them with violating a state immigration law that has been blocked by a federal judge, according to a bimonthly report from the Florida Attorney General’s Office.
The two previously unreported arrests indicate a back-and-forth between Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams over the controversial state law – which ended with Uthmeier in contempt of court – has left some local police unclear on what they can enforce.
The law, which makes it a state crime to enter Florida illegally, was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in February and resulted in multiple arrests, but it was blocked in April by Williams after immigrant-rights groups challenged its legality, arguing immigration enforcement falls to the federal government rather than the state.
Uthmeier then questioned the judge’s ruling and said he would not prevent implementation of the law in a June memo to law enforcement. In turn, Williams found Uthmeier in contempt of court and required him to file bimonthly reports on any subsequent arrests under the law.
The two arrests documented in the attorney general’s July 29 report occurred in Polk County, about 40 miles east of Tampa.
On July 27, a Bartow police officer pulled over 30-year-old Mexican immigrant Carlos Arturo Jimenez Morales for illegally switching lanes, according to the report. Jimenez Morales failed to provide a valid driver’s license.
An officer also questioned the passenger in the car, 25-year-old Ingrid Aracely Cruz Alva, and searched her belongings. She had a U.S. permanent resident identification card and social security card with a number that police could not confirm.
The officer contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, who confirmed Jimenez Morales and Cruz Alva were in the county illegally and issued both an immigration detainer.
Jimenez Morales was arrested for driving without a license, violating a motor vehicle financial responsibility law and illegal entry into Florida. Cruz Alva was arrested for possession of a fictitious identification and illegal entry into Florida.
In both cases, the state attorney’s office dismissed the illegal entry charges and notified the Attorney General’s Office, according to Uthmeier’s report.
Jimenez Morales still has a case pending for the two remaining charges, according to the Polk County Clerk. The arresting officer is not named in the AG’s report, but officer Vince Agostino is listed as a witness in the pending case against Jimenez Morales.
Cruz Alva’s case is listed as disposed, according to the Polk County Clerk.
Neither of the two arrested has any other criminal history in Florida, according to a criminal search through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Both remain in the Polk Central County Jail and have not yet been transferred to ICE custody, according to a search of current inmates. A judge set bond at $1,000 for Jimenez Morales and $10,000 for Cruz Alva.
Bartow Police Department has a 287 (g) agreement that facilitates cooperation with ICE, but any arrests for illegal entry are unlawful while the court’s injunction remains.
These arrests come after reports that law enforcement across the state have made arrests for illegal entry in violation of a judge’s order.
In another status report, Uthmeier said that St. John’s Sheriff’s Office conducted two arrests under the law in May. One of the men, Juan Aguilar, was deported to Mexico even though the charge was eventually dropped, the Marshall Project reported. A Tampa Bay Times investigation documented an additional 25 cases of illegal arrests, mainly by Florida Highway Patrol.
The attorney general’s report says that State Attorney Brian Haas spoke to the chief of Bartow Police Department after the arrests and reminded him of the Court’s injunction.
Bartow Police Department, the Attorney General’s Office and ICE did not respond to a request for comment.
Anna-Catherine Brigida is an investigative reporter at The Tributary who focuses on immigration. You can reach her at anna-catherine.brigida@jaxtrib.org.
