Why This Matters
Friction is building between the San Diego County sheriff and the Board of Supervisors over local resources and immigration enforcement.
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office is defying the Board of Supervisors’ vote last month to restrict federal immigration agencies’ access to a county-owned firing range, heightening a standoff between the sheriff and county leaders.
Customs and Border Protection used the firing range in Otay Mesa as recently as Monday, Sept. 1, with Sheriff Kelly Martinez’s approval despite the supervisors voting to end access for the federal agency starting Sunday Aug. 30.
The clash over the firing range marks the second time that Sheriff Martinez has ignored an attempt by the Democratic-led Board of Supervisors to limit how county resources are used in President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in San Diego.
Martinez earlier this year clashed with county supervisors over a policy limiting jail transfers to federal immigration custody.
It’s unclear whether the supervisors or the sheriff will have the final say on either issue.
But the disconnect between the sheriff and the board sends a message of distrust to the community, said Dave Myers, a former commander for the office who ran for sheriff in 2018 against then-Sheriff Bill Gore and again in 2022 against Martinez.
“If the community does not trust you, they will not call, even if they are witnesses to crimes,” Myers said. “They will not call if they are victims of crimes.”
Whose authority is it?
Last month, the supervisors voted 3-2 to cancel agreements that allowed Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to use two firing ranges the Sheriff’s Office operates: one in Otay Mesa owned by the county, one in Miramar leased by the county.
Customs and Border Protection officials said losing access would force officers to travel further for training, leading to staffing reductions in the field and longer lines at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry, the San Diego airport and other other sea and land ports in the region.
Supervisors Terra Lawson-Remer and Paloma Aguirre, who introduced the move to end access, said it was a step toward protecting the immigrants fearful of aggressive enforcement operations in their communities. They also were skeptical of claims from customs officials, with Aguirre calling them a scare tactic from the federal government.
After supervisors voted to end the contracts, the sheriff released a statement saying she would discontinue ICE’s access, but let Customs and Border Protection keep using the San Diego Regional Firearms Training Center in Otay Mesa.
On Monday, Lt. David Collins, a spokesperson for the office, told inewsource that Sheriff Martinez would continue allowing CBP access “until a practical alternative exists that does not jeopardize port of entry operations or create substantial hardship for the region’s workforce, commerce, and communities.”
Collins did not answer additional questions from inewsource asking what authority the sheriff’s office has to continue allowing access despite the cancellation of the contracts.
Supervisor Lawson-Remer’s office similarly did not answer a question from inewsource about why it believes the Board of Supervisors has authority over the issue, but said it is in discussions with the county’s legal team.
“County counsel is continuing to work on this and evaluate the different options,” said Beth Willon, press secretary for Lawson-Remer.
An earlier county clash
The firing range standoff is the second public dispute between the Sheriff’s Office and Board of Supervisors over the local response to the federal immigration crackdown.
In January, inewsource reported that the sheriff was violating a county ordinance passed ahead of Trump’s inauguration in 2025 which sought to limit certain transfers of people in sheriff’s custody to ICE.
At that time, the Sheriff’s Office said that the board of supervisors “does not set policy” for Martinez’s office.
Lawson-Remer’s office, which spearheaded the ordinance, did not say what, if anything, the board was doing to enforce the policy on ICE transfers at the Sheriff’s Office. Lawson-Remer and Sheriff Martinez declined interview requests on the topic in January.
Sheriff Martinez gave a presentation on jail reforms underway at the supervisors meeting on Monday, but neither the sheriff nor the supervisors mentioned the topic of the firing ranges.
inewsource was the first to report on the agreements allowing ICE and CBP to use the firing range in Otay Mesa. Since 2024, ICE and CBP have logged about 3,350 hours at the firing range and paid the sheriff $235,000 to use it.
Meanwhile, ICE has accelerated arrests in San Diego and Imperial counties, mostly driven by people without criminal convictions or pending charges.
ICE arrested nearly 2,000 people in the region last month, an increase of more than 50% from June. About 60% of those arrested in July had no criminal record.
Type of Content
News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
