Attorney General Knudsen urges Gallatin County to work with Trump Administration to combat illegal immigration

HELENA – Attorney General Austin Knudsen is urging the Gallatin County Commission to ignore a flawed opinion provided by the county attorney and partner with the Trump Administration’s Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) to detain dangerous criminals in the United States illegally, which will help keep Montana streets safe from drugs and violent crime.

The letter, sent Wednesday, followed a flawed “legal opinion” issued by Gallatin County Audrey Cromwell which recommended the county commission refuse to enter into an intergovernmental services agreement (IGSA) with ICE. The IGSA would allow ICE to hold illegal immigrants at the Gallatin County Detention Center until they can be transported for hearings in front of immigration judges.

“As an initial matter, the Cromwell Opinion consists primarily of political objections to enforcing our nation’s immigration laws rather than actual legal analysis,” Attorney General Knudsen wrote. “The American people, however, spoke loudly and clearly in November 2024. They sent Donald Trump back to the White House to secure our border, remove dangerous criminals and drugs from our streets, and end sanctuary jurisdictions. Montanans were likewise clear that they wanted their state and federal officials to support President Trump’s agenda, not undermine it.”

In her flawed opinion Cromwell ignores critical facts about what IGSA entails and why it is crucial for public safety in Montana. Cromwell fails to mention that without these agreements, it would be extremely difficult for ICE to do its job and lawfully remove aliens –particularly criminal aliens – from Montana communities, which would mean keeping them in the state indefinitely.

Additionally, the only option to remove aliens with criminal convictions from Montanan is for state and local law enforcement to cooperate with ICE and other federal law enforcement. As Attorney General Knudsen notes in his letter, the alternative to cooperating with ICE detainers is releasing aliens from jail into Montana communities, where they can commit additional crimes.

Montana is no stranger to the devastation caused by Joe Biden’s open southern border. The State Crime Lab reports 262 fentanyl-linked deaths during Biden’s four years in office. Fentanyl seizures also skyrocketed. In 2019, anti-drug task forces in Montana seized 1,900 dosage unites of fentanyl compared to 275,091 in 2024 – an increase of over 14,000 percent.

Recently, anti-drug task forces in Montana seized 4,900 carfentanil pills, that were trafficked by Mexican drug cartels into Montana. Carfentanil is 100 times more potent than fentanyl.

Attorney General Knudsen was also in Yuma, Ariz. this week for an update on activity at the southern border. While he was there provided an update on Montana’s fentanyl seizures and fentanyl-linked deaths during the Biden administration. He also thanked Customs and Border Patrol agents for their hard work to keep Montana and the country safe and thanked the Trump Administration for their work to secure the southern border.

Since taking office, Attorney General Knudsen has worked to help secure the southern border any way he can. In February, he signed an agreement with the Trump Administration which will allow Montana Highway Patrol troopers and Division of Criminal Investigation agents to aid in immigration enforcement and deportation efforts in Montana. In March, he joined a coalition defending President Trump’s efforts to deport members of the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, a gang that is present in Montana.

Click here to read the letter.