Eight undocumented migrant workers who were arrested in an immigration raid in Madison have made their initial court appearances Thursday.
Each worker is charged with use of a fraudulent identification document. Under federal law, that could mean as much as 15 years in prison.
An immigrant rights organization says the arrests are a consequence of misplaced priorities.
Taneeza Islam is the CEO of South Dakota Voices for Peace, a migrant advocacy organization. Islam said outside of that, most of the others did not have criminal records.
“So, they were charged with the crimes of having fake documents, which now gets them a criminal record," Islam said. "This narrative of the administration keeping us safe by deporting all these violent criminals – we heard for a fact is false.”
The state Attorney General office and Immigration and Customs Enforcement representatives declined to comment.
The arrests in Madison are the first high-profile immigration crackdown by the Trump Administration in South Dakota, led by Department of Homeland Security Secretary, and former governor, Kristi Noem.
Islam said the government should focus less on deportations and more on legal pathways to entry and work permits.
As ICE conducted its “worksite enforcement” action at two businesses in Madison, Islam said South Dakota faces major employee shortages in fields like ag, tourism, and hospitality.
“We could easily make it legal for these folks to work," Islam said. "It’s as easy as an executive order. It feels like the strategy is to get rid of all immigrants, that’s what it feels like, because this strategy is not making sense.”
Earlier this year, state lawmakers passed a bill which requires state and local law enforcement comply with all federal immigration laws and cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
That law goes into effect July 1.