Several people last week asked the Columbia Falls City Council to consider a resolution on standards for Immigration Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol actions in the city.

The request comes as ICE agents shot two U.S. citizens dead who were protesting their tactics in Minnesota. Killed in separate incidents were Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Macklin Good.

Good was shot through her car window while apparently trying to get away from ICE agents. ICE maintains she was trying to run over the agent, though video evidence seems to show the car veering away from him.

In Pretti’s case, video shows him holding up his phone and his open hand to ICE agents as he tries to shield a woman. While he was armed with a 9 mm handgun, he never brandishes it and video shows agents shooting him as he’s already been tackled and is on the ground.

Both incidents as well as many others in Minnesota and elsewhere have brought public outcry to almost every neighborhood in the country.

“Enforcement is happening outside of constitutional standards,” Anne Higgins told city council. She also claimed that actions in neighboring Whitefish were costing taxpayers money as it is facing a racial profiling lawsuit there in the case of a man who was detained by officers and subsequently handed over to the Border Patrol.

On Aug. 11, Venezuelan native Beker Rengifo del Castillo accused the city of unconstitutional seizure, false arrest, negligence and failure to train police officers in a lawsuit. All four counts stem from a traffic stop conducted by former Whitefish Police officer Michael Hingiss on April 24, 2025.

After pulling Rengifo del Castillo over for a broken taillight, Hingiss contacted federal immigration officials. Rengifo del Castillo was subsequently detained by Whitefish-based U.S. Border Patrol agents and transferred to the Northwest Immigration and Customs Enforcement Processing Center in Tacoma, Wash., where he was held for about a week before being released without charge.

Rengifo del Castillo entered the country legally in 2024 under a humanitarian parole program. At the time of Rengifo del Castillo’s arrest, a federal judge in Massachusetts had halted efforts to reverse that program.

The city has denied wrongdoing in the case.

Proponents of the resolution said that Helena had already approved a measure.

Higgins left copies of the resolution to council, which has several facets. The resolution, in its entirety, is below:

1. Clarifies constitutional standards for detention: Limits compliance with federal immigration detainer requests to circumstances in which such requests are accompanied by a judicial warrant signed by a judge or other court order establishing probable cause and lawful authority, as required by Fourth Amendment protections and to protect the city from constitutional liability.

2. Prioritizes local public safety resources: Clarifies that city resources, personnel, and facilities shall be prioritized for local law enforcement purposes rather than proactive enforcement of federal civil immigration law, while maintaining full compliance with lawful federal requests as required by state law.

3. Protects crime reporting, prevents discriminatory profiling, and maintains community trust: Affirms that city employees and law enforcement officers shall:

(a) Not inquire into an individual’s immigration status during routine interactions, traffic stops, or when individuals seek to report crimes, serve as witnesses, or access city services, except where expressly required by federal or state law, in order to maintain community trust and encourage crime reporting;

(b) Not use race, ethnicity, national origin, language, or perceived immigration status as factors in determining reasonable suspicion or probable cause for stops, searches, or other law enforcement actions, consistent with constitutional equal protection requirements and professional policing standards;

(c) Accept alternative forms of identification for purposes of establishing identity during routine interactions, including but not limited to consular identification cards, foreign passports, tribal identification, school identification, utility bills, or other documents that reasonably establish a person’s identity, when such identification is sufficient for the legitimate law enforcement purpose at hand;

(d) Focus investigative resources on criminal activity and public safety threats rather than civil immigration violations, which are federal administrative matters outside local jurisdiction and enforcement authority;

(e) Receive training on constitutional policing practices, including Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment requirements prohibiting racial profiling and ensuring equal protection under the law for all community members regardless of immigration status or national origin.

4. Declines voluntary deputization agreements: Declines to enter into or renew voluntary agreements that deputize local officers to perform federal immigration enforcement functions, including agreements authorized under Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, while maintaining cooperation with lawful federal requests.

5. Establishes facility access protocols: Establishes clear procedures governing access by federal immigration authorities to city facilities, including jails, government buildings, and courthouses, consistent with constitutional protections, public safety needs, and applicable state and federal law.

6. Requires legal review and training: Provides training for city employees and law enforcement personnel regarding constitutional requirements, the distinction between judicial and administrative warrants, these policies, and residents’ rights; and establishes legal counsel review of detainer requests to assess constitutional compliance and liability risk.

7. Ensures transparency and accountability: Requires periodic public reporting, consistent with privacy and legal constraints, regarding requests for cooperation from federal immigration authorities, costs incurred, and any legal claims or liability arising from immigration enforcement cooperation, to promote fiscal accountability and transparency.

The council took no formal action on the matter, though councilwoman Paula Robinson asked city manager Eric Hanks if he could procure a copy of Helena’s resolution.

Councilmembers Marijke Stob and Christopher Semok later expressed to the resolution proponents that they, too had concerns about ICE and Border Patrol tactics.

“I hear you when you talk about ICE,” Stob said later in the meeting to the group. “I personally am also very afraid.”

“I am also concerned about actions taken by ICE and CBT especially looking  at Whitefish and Minnesota and I am hoping we can come to a proper resolution to ensure that our residents of the city documented and undocumented rights are respected and upheld,” Semok said.