Clarifying mischaracterizations of Chattanooga Police
Thank you, Ben Sessoms, for providing the Chattanooga Police Department an opportunity to address how its officers enforce laws related to immigration and provide context omitted from your recent editorial (Times, 6/19).
Sessoms’ editorial, in which he addresses immigration enforcement, is misleading and reflects a misunderstanding of local law enforcement’s role. Claiming the CPD is executing federal mass deportations mischaracterizes the department’s responsibilities. Citing 2025 immigrant transfers from the Hamilton County Jail to federal custody lacks context; these transfers are the results of constitutional criminal justice processes following arrests for violations of state or local law. The CPD enforces only state and local criminal laws; immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility.
While opinion writers are entitled to their views, they should present complete facts. Sessoms could have referenced Chattanooga Times Free Press staff reporter Siena Duncan’s reporting on CPD Chief John Chambers’ presentation to the Chattanooga City Council explaining how CPD is, in fact, not acting as an immigration enforcement agency but operating within established law.
Elisa Myzal