10 November 13 - 19, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents sheriff’s departments in counties with more than 100,000 residents to enter into a 287(g) agreement. The program deputizes local law enforcement officers to perform immigration enforcement actions, such as checking whether a person is actively wanted by ICE or inquiring about a per- son’s immigration status. The Dallas Police Department does not currently ask for im- migration status when interacting with community members. Representatives for ICE disagreed with Comeaux’s characterization of the pro- gram, arguing that an officer would be en- couraged to go about their daily duties. An example of program involvement given was if an officer performed a traffic stop and was handed a foreign ID, they would check with ICE to see if that person was “of interest.” If so, that officer would be instructed to make an arrest and transport the person to the Dallas ICE field of- fice. The representa- tives for ICE stated that they “were not involved” in conver- sations where a $25 million figure was mentioned and had “never heard of a quota” being part of the 287(g) program. (Based on conversa- tion at the horse- shoe, it appears the $25 million total would come only if every DPD officer participated in the program, which would be unrealistic if the city de- cided to move forward with a partnership.) Additional confusion and frustration came when several council members’ ques- tions about the constitutionality of the pro- gram went unanswered. “If you have no interpretation of the Con- stitution, I don’t know how you’re supposed to sit there and sell us on a program that has wreaked havoc across communities,” said council member Adam Bazaldua. Only six public speakers voiced support for DPD joining the 287(g) program. Many pointed to a September incident, in which an undocumented immigrant beheaded a Dallas motel manager, as evidence that unenforced immigration is a public safety concern. The claim that immigrants can be tied to crime waves gained traction in the 1980s and has become a rallying argument for conservatives, but research suggests that undocumented people commit crimes at a lower rate than U.S. citizens. Looking at 2019 data from Texas, the CATO Insti- tute, a libertarian think tank, found that undocumented immigrants were 37.1% less likely to be convicted of a crime than someone born in the U.S. “[The left] will call this racist, but let’s be clear. This isn’t about race, it’s about rights,” said Bogdan Laurentiu, a Roma- nian immigrant and conservative com- mentator who voiced support for a 287(g) partnership. “The rights of Americans to feel safe.” For the most part, council members voiced support for Comeaux’s decision not to participate in a 287(g) partnership and took pride in the number of residents who attended to speak on the issue. Coun- cil member Gay Donnell Willis said it was “the first time” she’d ever seen “speakers from every district” sign up to speak on a single issue. The council voted unanimously not to pursue a partnership with ICE through the 287(g) program and motioned to sus- pend the discussion indefinitely, so that it cannot be revisited at a full City Council meeting. “I would be uncomfortable, personally, trying to represent a community that is afraid,” said council member Lorie Blair. “I appreciate that [Comeaux] did not put me, or any other part of our city, in that predicament. … I appreciate that he wants unity and not division.” ▼ SPORTS DING DONG, NICO IS GONE NINE MONTHS AFTER TEARING THE MAVERICKS TO SHREDS WITH THE LUKA DONCIC TRADE, THE MOST DESPISED GM IN SPORTS IS OUT. BY KELLY DEARMORE I n a move that Dallas Mavericks fans have been clamoring for since Feb 1, the Dallas Mavericks fired General Man- ager Nico Harrison on Tuesday morning. ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania re- ported on X at 9:21 a.m. that Harrison would be informed of the decision at a 10 a.m. meeting with team governor Patrick Dumont. Harrison was hired by former Maver- icks majority owner Mark Cuban in 2021, along with Head Coach Jason Kidd. In his first couple of years on the job, Harrison won praise for moves both splashy and shrewd while the team excelled on the court thanks primarily to the play of super- star guard Luka Doncic. Dallas reached the Western Conference Finals in 2022 and the NBA Finals in 2024. But Harrison’s reputation in Dallas took a historically dramatic turn when he traded Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1. Not only did he ship a transcendent super- star just entering his prime years to a con- ference rival, he did so while receiving in return what was widely considered to be a subpar package of players and draft picks. Making matters worse in the weeks imme- diately following the trade, Harrison, Du- mont and Kidd often doubled down when defending the move with opinions that of- ten came off as tone deaf and terribly mis- guided. Many thought Harrison received a re- prieve over the summer when the Mavs landed the No. 1 overall draft pick in the NBA Draft Lottery. Selecting Duke star Cooper Flagg managed to reignite interest in the team from a promotional perspec- tive, but through the first month of the NBA season, the team has stumbled to one of the worst records in the league. Rumors of Harrison’s potential firing began popping up in national headlines over the past few days, including in a report from Dallas-based NBA reporter Marc Stein, who also reported that the team had recently installed portable stairs next to where Harrison has been sitting at the American Airlines Center this season for a quick, easy exit. Before the season began, the Observer ran an informal survey asking readers if they were still Mavs fans after the Doncic trade. A large percentage of the respon- dents noted they would only follow the team again after Harrison was gone. Very seldom does a front-office move elicit any response from its fanbase, let alone one so loud and seemingly unanimous. Some prominent local sports radio personalities were quick to voice their approval of the firing on social media. “If there are a lot of mid-August birth- days in DFW next year, you can thank the firing of Nico for that,” posted 97.1 pro- ducer Kenvin Turner on Tuesday morning. 1310 The Ticket’s Sean Bass posted a note saying “Let the healing process begin,” while his station mate Dave Lane took a slightly different tone, directing Harrison to “rot in hell.” Stewart F. House/Getty Images Council member Jaime Resendez accused the mayor of engaging in “reckless, self- serving leadership.” Unfair Park from p8 “I DON’T KNOW HOW YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO .. SELL US ON A PROGRAM THAT HAS WREAKED HAVOC.” - ADAM BAZALDUA When news happens, Dallas Observer is there. Your support strengthens our coverage. GIVE TODAY DALLASOBSERVER.COM/ SUPPORT
