Sept. 16, 2026
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
Bethlehem City Council voted 4-3 on Tuesday to allow the city’s police force to work with Homeland Security on criminal investigations.
That agreement, known as a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), specifically excludes cooperation on immigration enforcement.
In favor of the agreement were Michael Colon, Bryan Callahan, Justin Amann and President Rachel Leon. Opposed were Hillary Kwiatek, Colleen Laird and Jo Daniels.
Some council members expressed concerns about working with Homeland Security, which is part of ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Police Chief Michelle Kott said the city needs access to federal resources for complex cases involving human trafficking, child exploitation, drug smuggling, financial fraud and export violations. Those are crimes that cross borders.
“It is going to provide us with tools that are necessary for my officers to do their jobs,” Kott said. She said big investigations can benefit from federal resources, noting a specific current investigation that she could not discuss.
Kott acknowledged the distrust in some quarters about Homeland Security, but she said the city can work with the federal government and maintain the trust of residents. She said Bethlehem can end the agreement with 30 days notice.
Enforcement of immigration laws has led to protests and shootings of U.S. citizens. In Bethlehem, there were complaints after U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) arrested 17 workers at the fire-damaged Five 10 Flats apartments in south Bethlehem.
“It is important to clearly state that this proposed MOU is not for immigration enforcement,” Kott’s memo to City Council says.
Video of the meeting is available at this link. The Homeland Security discussion starts around the 1-hour 40-minute mark of the two-hour-plus meeting.
City Council also approved raising some fees for police records.
The entire Homeland Security memo is available on the city website. Below is the first page:
Council approved Kott’s request to increase charges for some police records and set a $125 fee for audio and video recordings, including images from police body cameras.
Council member Justin Amann asked about the new fee for recordings.
“That’s consistent with other law-enforcement agencies locally,” Police Chief Michelle Kott said of the $125. Video can include in-car cameras and street cameras, and an officer must take on the role of video editor and look at each recording.
The fee for fingerprinting and criminal background checks will go to $20 from $15 on Jan. 1. The $15 charge for accident reports remains the same.
Council voted 6-1 to raise the fees, which haven’t gone up since 2015. In favor were Leon, Laird, Daniels, Amann, Colon and Kwiatek. Callahan voted no.
If meetings didn’t go on so long and weren’t so repetitive, perhaps more residents would attend. Perhaps not.
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 