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Assemblywoman Selena Torres (D-Las Vegas) confronted a representative of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department during a hearing over differing accounts of the agency’s role in deportations. 

During an Assembly Government Affairs Committee meeting on Friday, Assemblywoman Bea Duran (D-Las Vegas) asked Metro lobbyist Sgt. Beth Schmidt about the police agency’s relationship with ICE, recalling that during the 2021 legislative session the same question was asked and the answer at the time was that there were “no formal agreements” and “no more communication” between law enforcement and the federal immigration agency.

Just a few months after, in October 2021, Gov. Joe Lombardo was heard saying at a campaign event that he played a role in 10,000 deportations in his time as Clark County sheriff.

Torres, the committee chairwoman, called out information inconsistencies from the department, saying it’s “unfair” for the committee to be misguided. 

“Our expectation is that this is a relationship of trust, and that this department comes to this committee to speak honestly about what's happening,” Torres said in the meeting. 

Even though Schmidt was not the face of the department in 2021, she acknowledged that the committee had raised an important point and promised to provide the correct information.  

In 2019, Metro announced it would end its 287(g) agreement with ICE after a California judge ruled against partnerships between federal immigration authorities and local jurisdictions. Advocates argued that  the agreement, which allowed police to keep people detained while ICE was notified of the person’s unauthorized immigration status, led to unconstitutional and warrantless arrests.

Editor’s Note: This story first appeared in Behind the Bar, The Nevada Independent’s newsletter dedicated to comprehensive coverage of the 2023 Legislature. Sign up for the newsletter here.