From Lynn Tramonte and Twenty-five Area Pastors
On September 9, 2025, twenty-five pastors from a variety of denominations signed a letter (included here) expressing grave concerns about the use of the Butler County Jail to detain immigrants, many of whom have no criminal records. Some of the people detained at the jail are members of the pastors’ congregations or are neighbors they know personally. Clergy were invited to tour the jail and were grateful for the hospitality of staff. However, serious concerns remain. In a letter, sent by the clergy, they named conditions in the jail that need to be significantly improved if the county is going to continue to be in this business, and asked for a meeting with the county commissioners to address their concerns.
This is the letter sent on:
September 9, 2025
To the Commissioners of Butler County, Cindy Carpenter, Donald Dixion, TC Rogers, the Butler County Sheriff’s Office, and the General Public:
As a group of area clergy, some of us were able to be part of a tour of the Butler County Jail on August 13, 2025, and we were grateful for that opportunity. This afforded us time to talk with Chief Deputy Anthony Dwyer and briefly meet Sheriff Richard Jones. Thank you for your hospitality and willingness to talk with us about our concerns and for giving us the opportunity to hear concerns of staff as they relate to the public. The conversation and tour enabled us to see the human side of those who work at the facility, and how they are individuals with individual perspectives. We noted the prison culture of cleanliness as part of an effort to foster professionalism.
It was not surprising to us to hear from staff that the immigrant detainees are quite easy to manage. Chief Deputy Dwyer noted that there are far fewer behavioral issues among the immigrant detainees than there are among American citizens incarcerated at the jail for criminal offenses. We recognize that there are some immigrants who are detained for criminal misconduct, but the vast majority are not. The detained immigrants include, as we have noted, members of our churches and other faith communities, they are hardworking neighbors, and friends that we trust and value.
After debriefing from our tour and consulting with additional clergy in the area, we are left troubled by the fact that immigrant detainees are treated the same as prisoners convicted of crimes. Many of the immigrants we work with in our churches were in the US legally until government rules changed making them deportable, or in other ways fell into the cracks of our complex immigration laws. These are mostly civil, not criminal, matters.
We believe it is morally wrong to treat immigrants detained for civil matters as if they were criminal offenders. Further, law as interpreted by the courts appears to agree, requiring that a distinction be made:
“Immigration detainees, however, are not convicted prisoners. Rather, they are civil detainees held pursuant to civil immigration laws. Their protections are thus derived from the Fifth Amendment, which protects any person in the custody of the United States from conditions that amount to punishment without due process of law. See Wong Wing v. United States, 163 U.S. 228, 237 (1896). Few courts have
explored the precise contours of this protection. However, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has held that conditions of confinement for civil detainees must be superior not only to convicted prisoners, but also to pre-trial criminal detainees. Jones v. Blanas, 393 F.3d 918 (9th Cir. 2004), cert. denied, 126 S.Ct. 351 (2005). If a civil detainee is confined in conditions that are identical to, similar to, or more restrictive than those under which pre-trial detainees or convicted prisoners are held, then those conditions are presumptively punitive and unconstitutional. Id. at 934. By definition, immigration detainees are thus entitled to, at minimum, the higher standard of protection articulated in Jones.” (ACLU Conditions of Confinement in Immigration Detention Facilities, p.2, https:// assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/document/unsr_briefing_materials.pdf)
Therefore we want to begin talking about ways to improve the quality of treatment of immigrant detainees to reflect this morally and legally required difference. A more humane treatment of immigrant detainees would involve concrete actions to demonstrate greater respect for their dignity. This could include matters such as the following:
- Turn the lights off at night in detainees’ cells so they can get adequate rest and avoid interrupting their sleep for at least eight hours each night. This would come with a benefit: adequate sleep would improve morale and cooperation.
- Increase the amount of time each day that detainees are allowed out of their cells for socialization to improve mental and spiritual health, Including time in the open air: sunlight is important in staving off depression.
- Provide needed mental health staff and services. Without training, guards might interpret a mental health crisis as “bad behavior”. This is not an abstract possibility but a very real concern we carry for specific detainees we know who are in a mental health crisis as a result of detainment. We know of one case in particular where an individual was subjected to punitive responses rather than being given appropriate mental health support.
- Assure that there are bilingual staff and translation services provided for communications.
- Allow in-person clergy visits with detainees and translators as needed.
- Reduce the cost of phone communication with family and friends.
- Improve the quality of food – giving attention to a greater variety of nutritionally balanced meals with adequate natural fiber to avoid painful constipation and adequate calories to stave off hunger.
- Improve prisoner access to medical and dental care. In a recent conversation with a prison dentist in the Columbus area, we learned that it is not unusual for a prison to provide regular dental cleaning and filling of cavities, for example.
- Provide rigorous training for guards working with immigrant detainees so they are aware of the importance of distinguishing between criminal and civil detainees and ensure that they are treating all with dignity and respect.
While we hear from detainees that most guards are professional in their work with them, we have heard direct testimony that some are petty, insulting, and abusive. We still hold that detaining immigrants for civil violations is immoral based on the clear teaching of the Holy Scriptures and church values. We believe Butler County should not be cooperating with ICE in detaining our neighbors and thus in breaking up good families in our neighborhoods. However, as long as the county is involved in this business, then conditions in the jail need to be significantly improved as noted above. We therefore ask the county commissioners to schedule a meeting with us to begin negotiating an agreement that would significantly improve conditions for the detainees held at the Butler County Jail.
Sincerely,
Rev. Lawrence Bartel, Oxford Presbyterian Church, Oxford, OH
Rev. Marc van Bulck, Associate Pastor for Family and Campus Ministries, Oxford, OH
The Rev. Julie Blake Fisher, Rector, Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Oxford, OH
Marie Edwards, Associate Pastor, Faith United Church, Middletown, OH
Rev. Peter Hamm, Jacksonburg United Methodist Church, Jacksonburg, OH
Rev. Caleb Henry, Oxford United Methodist Church, Oxford, OH
Rev. Larry Kreps, Retired United Methodist Minister, Middletown, OH
Rev. Scottie Robertson, First Baptist Church, Middletown, OH
Rev. Dr. Katharine L. Steele, Campus Pastor for Wesley Campus Ministry, Oxford, OH
United Methodist Church, Oxford, OH
Rev. Kelly Venturini, Pleasant Ridge United Methodist Church, Middletown, OH
Rev. John Wagner, Seven Mile United Methodist Church
Clergy from the region who share in these concerns:
Rev. Paula Bowser, retired, Trotwood Church of the Brethren
Pastor Terrilynn Griffith, retired, Lower Miami Church of the Brethren, Dayton, OH
Rev. Anna Lisa Gross, Beacon Heights Church of the Brethren, Fort Wayne, IN
Rev. Irvin Heishman, West Charleston Church of the Brethren, Tipp City, OH
Pastor Jon Keller, Troy Church of the Brethren, Troy, OH
Rev. Caleb Kragt, West Charleston Church of the Brethren, Tipp City, OH
Rev. Mark Lancaster Trotwood Church of the Brethren, Trotwood, OH
Rev. Bruce E. Rosenberger, retired, Living Peace Church of the Brethren, Columbus, OH Pastor Lee D. Saylor Salem Church of the Brethren, Englewood, OH
Rev. J. Trent Smith, Happy Corner Church of the Brethren, Clayton, OH
Rev. Zachary Spidel, East Dayton Fellowship, Dayton, OH
Rev. Paula Ziegler Ulrich, Beacon Heights Church of the Brethren, Fort Wayne, IN
Rev. Dr. Andrew J.O. Wright. Oakland Church of the Brethren, Bradford, OH
Rev. Michael Yingst, Covington Church of the Brethren, Covington, OH
For more information, CONTACT: Pastor Irvin Heishman (irheishman@gmail.com, 540-383-1274) or Pastor Caleb Kragt (caleb.kragt@gmail.com, 765-914-5247)