Livingston County has decided to monitor and document all encounters that local law enforcement has with illegal immigrants, MLive reported.

The Livingston County Board of Commissioners, which is made up entirely of Republicans, passed the resolution 8-0 at an August 23 board meeting, following two hours of public comment.

The resolution orders local law enforcement to track all encounters with illegal immigrants, and is meant to address the downstream effects of the Democrats’ loose enforcement of U.S. border policies.

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“Whereas, citizens continue to express concerns about illegal immigration and its associated increase in crime, and whereas, ignoring these concerns, Border Czar Kamala Harris has permitted millions of illegal immigrants to cross our borders, and whereas, though largely denied and underreported by major media organizations, these illegal immigrants have contributed to an increase in crime,” the resolution says.

The resolution came about largely in the aftermath of a 2023 Livingston County incident involving the rape of a minor by a 27-year-old illegal immigrant. The perpetrator pleaded guilty.

Though the resolution had broad public support and passed easily, the move triggered other individuals who attended the meeting to call the board racist.

Steve Monet, a former mayor of Brighton, accused the board of “scapegoating these individuals,” and suggested that, despite the prior year’s rape, they “haven’t really come up with a rationale for it.”

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Elinor Jordan, an attorney for the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center who reportedly does not live in Livingston County, joined Monet, arguing that “this resolution will make Livingston County less safe.”

In a separate report, Michigan Advance noted that Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy is in “full agreement” with the decision of the Board.

“It’s interesting that we keep statistics on all kinds of things, frankly,” Murphy said in a video that he posted to Facebook pointing out the numerous other demographic details that are recorded each time a crime is reported.

“When we book somebody in, we know if they’re male, if they’re female. We know if they’re Black, they’re white, they’re Hispanic, Asian. We know their age…. But yet when we talk about keeping track of or knowing how many contacts we have with illegal immigrants, everybody’s hair gets on fire.”

The decision also triggered the Michigan American Civil Liberties Union, which issued a statement declaring the organization’s concerns.

“We are deeply concerned about the passage of a resolution in Livingston County,” the ACLU noted, adding that Michigan should be a place that does not “discriminate on the basis of immigration status.”