A Dane County judge escalated a jurisdictional tug of war between ICE and Dane County Sheriff Kalvin Barrett after an illegal immigrant accused of killing two in a tragic car crash was detained by ICE agents last week.
The judge ordered ICE to return 30-year-old Noelia Martinez-Avila, who is charged with two counts of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle after a tragic car crash that killed an 18-year-old female and a 19-year-old male.
The showdown started with a war of words between ICE and Barrett after Barrett stated that he would not honor an ICE detainer to deport Martinez-Avila back to Honduras, and continued to escalate after she was detained by ICE after posting bail.
Dane County has been labeled a ‘sanctuary jurisdiction’ by ICE after Barrett has pledged not to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
A press release by ICE states that Dane County law enforcement gave them notice before releasing Martinez-Avila, leading to speculation that Barrett backed off of his pledge to not honor ICE detainers.
Shortly after being detained by ICE agents, prosecutors requested a hearing to raise Martinez-Avila’s bail and it was subsequently increased to $5 million after she had already posted $250,000 bail last week.
Deputy District Attorney William Brown asked the judge to raise Martinez-Avila’s bail to $20 million, fearing that she would not face trial if she is deported to Honduras. (RELATED: Congressman Says Wisconsin Sanctuary County Should Lose All Funding)
“My fear is if bail is not raised that will likely happen very soon, and as soon as she is out of the country, there is little to no chance we will ever prosecute this person,” he said.
