MEDINA, Ohio — Several residents urged the Medina County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday to adopt a resolution pledging that the county will not use its resources to assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with civil immigration enforcement unless ICE presents a judicial warrant or there is active criminal activity.
More than a dozen speakers — some reading from a detailed, six‑section resolution they drafted — spent an hour telling commissioners they fear constitutional violations, racial profiling and public safety breakdowns could come to their county after recent high‑profile ICE operations in Minneapolis and around the country.
Speakers repeated concerns that ICE has detained U.S. citizens, conducted raids without judicial warrants and increasingly targets people based on appearance or accent. Many said residents who are undocumented or in the process of applying for asylum now fear going to work, school or medical appointments.
Several cited actions by Cleveland City Council and Summit County Council in the last week, saying Medina County should join other local governments pushing back against state legislation that would require cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
“We’re asking you to take a small step,” Heather Nichols, of Seville, said. “There is absolutely nothing in the resolution that asks Medina County to not enforce legitimate immigration enforcement. What we won’t be part of is something that places all of us in danger.”
Mary Emhoff of Medina read the full text of the proposed resolution, which would prohibit the county from signing detention contracts with ICE or the U.S. Marshals Service, bar participation in civil immigration operations without a judge‑signed warrant and require public reporting of any requests from federal immigration agencies. She said the measure aims to “protect safety and maintain public trust and decency for all individuals, regardless of immigration status.”
Others framed the issue in moral terms.
“Scripture commands us to welcome the stranger,” Elaine Stone of Medina said, adding that many of the county’s roughly 6,000 Hispanic residents have lived in the community for years. “We have absolutely nothing to fear from them.”
Some warned of economic and reputational consequences if ICE uses Medina County facilities or staging areas. Kathy Giuliano pointed to the city’s tourism‑friendly downtown and said images of armed federal agents on the square could damage local businesses. Others said cooperation with ICE exposes the county to legal liability if civil detentions violate constitutional protections.
One speaker offered a dissenting view. Melissa Tucker of Medina Township urged commissioners to support immigration enforcement and maintain cooperation with federal authorities, arguing that “illegal immigrants” entered the country in violation of U.S. law.
“You have taken an oath to serve the residents of Medina County, not citizens of other nations,” she said.
Medina County is a Republican stronghold. President Donald Trump won a larger percentage of the vote each time he ran for president, including taking 60% of the vote in 2024, when he made immigration crackdowns part of his campaign.
Commissioners did not act on the resolution Tuesday and said they typically do not vote on items introduced during public comment. But they thanked the crowd for what they described as thoughtful and respectful remarks.
Commissioner Stephen Hambley pointed to the indictment filed last year against two off-duty police officers — Cleveland police officer Donald Kopchak and then-Portage County Sheriff’s Deputy Daniel Lajack — accused of attacking and harassing a man at a Hinckley bar after they wrongly accused him of being in the country illegally.
Lajack on Monday pleaded guilty to attempted abduction and agreed to forfeit his Ohio law enforcement certification and testify against Kopchak if his case goes to trial.
Hambley praised Medina County Prosecutor Forrest Thompson’s office for pursuing charges in that case.
“Our law enforcement officials are doing the right thing,” Hembley said. “They are doing a good and fair job with the enforcement of all laws and protection of the community.”
Commissioner Aaron Harrison said the board must consider the limits of its legal authority. Directing the sheriff not to cooperate with federal agencies, he said, could violate the separation of powers.
“You do things today with the best of intentions and they have unintended consequences,” he said.
Commissioners did not indicate whether they plan to discuss the resolution at a future meeting.
