Whitewater police chief sends letter to Biden asking for help with immigration

Whitewater Police Chief Daniel Meyer sent a letter to President Joe Biden and other national and state officials last week, asking for resources to assist the city with an increase in immigrants from Nicaragua and Venezuela.

In his letter, Meyer noted that Whitewater, which has a population of about 15,000, has seen about 800 to 1,000 immigrants arrive since early 2022.

"As a municipal government, our focus is not on legal status, but rather ensuring we are providing the resources expected of a municipality to all residents of the City. Unfortunately, we are increasingly finding it difficult to do that," Meyer wrote.

Meyer explained challenges with communication and expensive translation software. He said officers' workload is strained due to an increase in unlicensed drivers, and the department's number of traffic stops is down.

Meyer said officers have seen poor living conditions and responded to multiple sexual assaults and other crimes, including the death of an infant.

"None of this information is shared as a means of denigrating or vilifying this group of people," Meyer said. "We see great value in the increasing diversity that this group brings to our community. We simply need to ensure that we can continue to properly serve this group."

Meyer asked for help in funding additional staff, including an immigrant liaison position, or creating a grant opportunity the city could apply for.

WhitewaterWise reported that Meyer presented the letter to the Common Council in mid-December, where the council also indicated it would write a letter of its own.

Meyer's letter was sent to 13 officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, U.S. Sens. Ron Johnson and Tammy Baldwin, U.S. Reps. Bryan Steil and Scott Fitzgerald and state lawmakers that represent the area.

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In November, Johnson and Steil met with local law enforcement to discuss the impact of illegal immigration on Whitewater and Walworth County. At a press conference following the meeting, Meyer outlined the same challenges included in his letter.

Johnson and Steil have laid the blame for illegal crossings into the United States on the Biden Administration. On Wednesday, Steil was one of about 60 Republicans who visited the U.S.-Mexico border as they continue pushing for tighter immigration policies in exchange for aid to Ukraine.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Whitewater police chief asks Biden for help with immigration