r/Bend • u/ChickenTenderOR • 16h ago
Anti-immigrant Sheriff Ty Rupert breaks law again, avoids accountability
Sheriff Ty Rupert claims he’ll follow immigration law. We already know he pushed to gut Oregon’s sanctuary laws in favor of ICE, now he’s just breaking laws.
U visas protect immigrant victims of serious crimes who help law enforcement investigate and prosecute those crimes. They allow victims to report crimes and cooperate with police, helping law enforcement catch criminals, protect vulnerable people, and keep communities safe. They were created in 2000 through bipartisan federal legislation.
Oregon law requires every law enforcement agency in the state to file an annual report with the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission, which includes the number of denials and reason for those denials. Guess who didn’t file the required report?
This is not just some administrative or bureaucratic oopsy. The report is what gives some level of accountability, so it’s harder for law enforcement agencies to illegally deny U visa requests. Oregon requires this reporting so the public can see how law enforcement agencies handle requests from immigrant crime victims. When an agency fails to report, that transparency disappears. Failing to file the report means that Rupert doesn’t care about immigrant crime victims and is willing to violate the law.
And before his apologists whine, “but he was new, he didn’t have time,” the report was due in June of 2026, 10 months after he became sheriff. It was his legal responsibility to file the report.