ICE clash: AG Austin Knudsen, County Attorney Audrey Cromwell spar over immigration information

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is demanding Gallatin County Attorney Audrey Cromwell rescind a policy he claims refuses to recognize U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a criminal justice agency.

Cromwell says no such policy exists.

Knudsen’s office counters it is Cromwell’s call whether to prevent criminal justice information sharing with federal immigration officials, per a Thursday Montana Department of Justice release.

“The policy puts the safety of Gallatin County residents at risk and undermines law enforcement operations to crack down on illegal immigration in Montana,” reads the release.

Cromwell pushed back on Knudsen’s claims the same day, explaining the rift between the county and state stems from a singular denied request for private information regarding immigration enforcement as a civil — not a criminal — matter, per Cromwell.

She emphasizes that she has no blanket policy that prohibits cooperating with ICE.

“On the specific instance raised by the Records Department in September, ICE requested nonpublic Criminal Justice Information regarding an individual for a civil matter,” Cromwell said in an email. “After legal review, the civil division of the County Attorney’s Office determined that ICE, in this context, was not acting as a ‘criminal justice agency’ under Montana’s Confidential Criminal Justice Information statutes because the request was civil in nature and did not fall within the statutory definition tied to the administration of criminal justice. Our office advised the Records Department that a District Court Judge should determine whether the CCJI should be released in that matter.

“It is important to be clear: there is no blanket policy in Gallatin County prohibiting cooperation with ICE or any federal agency, nor is there a policy restricting the sharing of information.”

Knudsen attached an Oct. 2, 2025, email from Jack Veil, Cromwell’s executive assistant, to his cease-and-desist order.

“I am writing to inform you that the Gallatin County Attorney’s Office does not legally recognize Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a law enforcement agency entitled to receive CCJI,” Veil said in the email. “Accordingly, ICE is not authorized under Montana law to access CCJI without a court order. Therefore, ICE is only entitled to public documents. All other documents being requested should be processed like a standard CCJI request.”

It remains unclear why the 2025 email boiled into an interagency conflict six months after it was sent. Through Veil, Cromwell declined to comment on what could happen if the cease-and-desist letter is not followed, or if her office is prepared to challenge the order in court.

“During the week of Oct. 2, while I was in trial, a legal assistant responded to the Records Department on behalf of the civil division,” Cromwell said in her statement. “That communication addressed a specific legal question about a particular case. It was not and should not be considered ‘policy’. {!--StartFragment--}The situation in October stemmed from ICE requesting criminal justice records that were non public, and confidential under statute.”

The exact “civil matter” has not been made public.

A civil matter can be a non-criminal legal dispute between individuals, businesses, or government agencies.

“No, it’s not a civil case,” Cromwell said Friday in an email to the Chronicle. “ICE wanted criminal justice information. Think information about criminal cases, on a person for civil immigration enforcement.

“Typically, such guidance would come directly from me or one of my attorney deputies. I take responsibility for any confusion that may have resulted from that email.”

Cromwell has a history of trying to hold ICE accountable. She flew to a January lawmaker coalition in Minneapolis with 120 officials from 27 states demanding ICE be reined in after an agent fatally shot Renee Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, on Jan. 7.

Good’s death touched off widespread protests in Minneapolis while ICE continued arrests. Less than two miles from where Good was killed, the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, another U.S. citizen, on Jan. 24 intensified national public outrage over ICE tactics.

The Montana DOJ release references another disagreement between the county and state attorney’s offices after an April 24, 2025, legal opinion from Cromwell advising Gallatin County against an agreement with ICE to hold undocumented immigrants at the Gallatin County Detention Center.

At the time, Cromwell said the agreement carried constitutional concerns, legal liability and taxpayer costs, per the opinion.

The cease-and-desist order from Knudsen is not the only one from the attorney general aimed at a local Montana jurisdiction’s immigration handling. He sent a similar letter in March to Helena after the city advised its police department to “avoid” working with ICE in January. The Helena City Commission voted 4-1 to rescind the resolution last week.

“We banned sanctuary cities to keep our cities safe,” Gov. Greg Gianforte said in a March 27 Facebook post. “The City of Helena made the right decision to rescind its resolution and allow Helena Police Department to continue its cooperation with federal immigration authorities.”

Said Cromwell: “My role as County Attorney is to ensure that Gallatin County complies with the law while also protecting the County from unnecessary legal exposure. That includes carefully safeguarding confidential information and respecting the privacy rights guaranteed under Montana law.”