Overview
- The City Council voted 9-4 to reject Councilor Ed Flynn’s 17F request seeking communications and specifics on ICE detainers ignored by Boston Police since Jan. 1, 2024.
- Supporters of the defeat, including Councilor Ben Weber, argued the request advanced a false narrative about sanctuary-city safety, while Flynn called it routine transparency and alleged mayoral pressure.
- Police Commissioner Michael Cox reported BPD received 57 ICE detainers in 2025 and ignored all under Boston’s Trust Act, with each citing probable cause of removability.
- A gap in the record persists from 2024, when BPD reported 15 detainers while ICE said it sent 198, a discrepancy attributed in part to how detainers were transmitted.
- Separately, Mayor Michelle Wu directed $700,000 from participatory budgeting to immigrant legal defense and career-pathway programs after resident voting.