Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison has reversed course on his vow to fire two officers who allegedly coordinated with federal Border Patrol agents against department policy, leading to the detainment of two immigrants, Bettison said in a statement on Friday, Feb. 20.
Citing a unanimous Thursday decision by Detroit's police oversight board to suspend the officers without pay for 30 days, Bettison said, "I am satisfied with the Board’s decision, and I will not be pursuing termination of these two officers."
A Detroit police spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for more information.
The about-face comes after one of the suspended officers — a 27-year department veteran and sergeant who called Border Patrol agents to a traffic stop on Feb. 9 — sued the city to block further discipline, including termination.
In her lawsuit, Sgt. Denise Wallet argued that department policies restricting contact with federal immigration authorities violate Section 1373 of Title 8 of the U.S. Code, which prohibits state or local governments from limiting communication with federal immigration officials.
More: Detroit police sergeant sues city over Border Patrol contact suspension
The Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement also weighed in on the situation Thursday, on X, formerly Twitter.
"We have a place for you, patriots," ICE posted over a news story noting the department's intention to fire the sergeant and another officer. "http://JOIN.ICE.GOV."
DHS later posted, "It’s absurd that two Detroit police officers would face punishment for alerting CBP about a criminal illegal alien — they are American heroes who chose public safety first."
Bettison revealed the alleged instances of coordination at last week's meeting of the Board of Police Commissioners, where he requested the board vote to withhold pay from the officers during their suspensions and said he intended to eventually fire the officers.
In the Feb. 9 instance of coordination, a sergeant called Border Patrol after an officer requested translation services during a traffic stop of a person who did not speak English, Bettison said. Border Patrol responded, “conducted their investigation,” “determined that the individual was not a U.S. citizen,” and “as a result” took the person, Bettison said.
The incident occurred at approximately 3:15 p.m., Bettison said. Around 4 p.m. the same day, the Free Press saw Detroit police and Border Patrol agents downtown at Woodward Avenue and Witherell Street.
When a Free Press reporter approached and asked what was going on, a Detroit police officer declined to comment before getting in her vehicle, and the Border Patrol agents got in their vehicle and drove off. The department did not respond to subsequent Free Press requests for more information before eventually confirming the incident Bettison revealed days later was the one the paper saw.
The suit filed on Wallet's behalf in federal court Thursday contradicts Bettison's version of the events of Feb. 9.
Wallet contacted Border Patrol at a supervising lieutenant's direction after a traffic stop involving a person who presented a fraudulent electronic Michigan driver’s license, the suit says. She involved Border Patrol solely to verify the person's identity because she'd been unable to do so with a department-issued fingerprint scanner.
Wallet never inquired about the person’s immigration status and did not contact Border Patrol for translation purposes, the suit said, both of which the department has said are barred by policy. The suit says Wallet contacted federal authorities in a legitimate law enforcement purpose rather than an attempt to enforce immigration law.
The lawsuit also states that during the traffic stop, Wallet made a comment expressing disagreement with department policy regarding immigration and collaboration with federal authorities. The suit argues the statement was protected speech under the First Amendment.
In addition to the case of coordination downtown, Bettison told the oversight board last week that another officer coordinated with federal immigration authorities on the city's west side on Dec. 16, 2025.In that case, discovered during a body camera audit, the officer was “investigating an individual on a felony warrant at a location on the west side and ultimately … believing that the individual was not a U.S. citizen, decided to contact Border Patrol,” Bettison said.
“Border Patrol did respond, and Border Patrol ultimately took this individual,” he said.
Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield's office said Friday that she supports Bettison's decision not to fire the officers.
"The Mayor, like the Chief, believes the (Board of Police Commissioners) understood the gravity of the officers violating a longstanding departmental policy and took appropriate action by voting unanimously to suspend them without pay for 30 days," said mayoral spokesman John Roach. "The mayor respects the authority of the BOPC on matters of police discipline and also respects Chief Bettison’s position regarding the Board’s action last night."
Violet Ikonomova is an investigative reporter at the Free Press focused on government and police accountability. Contact her at vikonomova@freepress.com.
