Residents urge Butler County commissioners to cancel jail ICE contract during public comment

Dozens of residents used the board’s public-comment period on Sept. 15 to urge Butler County commissioners to cancel the county jail’s contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Andrew Warren, a 17-year Hamilton resident, told the commissioners that "canceling the contract with ICE need not to be a moral, ethical, or even a decision you agree with; just that you are serving the common good and the will of the people." Warren said elected officials can act in the public interest even if they privately disagree with the policy. Several other residents—Steve Holmquist, Kathy McMahon Closterman, Sharon Meyer, Louis Mead and Lisa Bialis—made similar appeals during the three-minute comment slots, citing local impacts and calling for concrete steps to end the contract.

Steve Holmquist framed his remarks in a national context, saying the county "has patients in our Butler County Jail" and tying his concern to a series of national incidents that he argued had local consequences. Kathy McMahon Closterman said the choice to maintain the contract asks the board to weigh "compassion versus cruelty," and Sharon Meyer asked the board directly, "What will it take to reverse the ICE contract with our jail?" Lisa Bialis repeatedly told the commissioners "End the ICE contract," citing alleged local harms and urging action.

The board did not deliberate during the comment period; per the rules announced at the start of public comment, commissioners did not engage in back-and-forth while speakers addressed the panel. The public-comment period concluded with the clerk ending timed remarks, and the meeting proceeded to routine reports and the adjournment vote.