City official allegedly lied to get into detention center to see lover

FLORIDA — A city commissioner has been convicted of a federal crime after she allegedly pretended to be a law firm’s paralegal to visit with her reported lover being held at an ICE Detention Center, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (USAO) has announced.

According to the USAO, Julianna Clare Strout, 36, has been convicted of lying to get into a federal immigration detention center in Miami to see her romantic partner. Strout has served as a North Bay Village City Commissioner since November 2018.  Her term expires this November.

Strout pled guilty to a federal information charging her with attempting to enter, and entering, a federal facility using fraud and false pretenses, the USAO said.

In October 2021, Krome Service Processing Center (Krome) temporarily suspended social visits due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Legal visits, however, were permitted.

According to the USAO, three times in October 2021, Strout entered Krome by reportedly lying to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials about her reason for visiting.  Strout allegedly told officials that she worked as a paralegal for a particular law firm and that she needed to visit a detainee to have legal documents signed.

In addition, Strout presented officials with a letter on the law firm’s letterhead, the USAO said.

According to the USAO, the law firm never authorized Strout to use its letterhead or visit Krome on its behalf.  Strout had never worked for the law firm.  Instead, she was romantically involved with the detainee, the USAO said.

On one occasion, after initially being denied entry, Strout allegedly presented to officers at Krome her North Bay Village Commissioner badge, explained that she was a public official, and asked to enter Krome on that basis.

Immediately following the guilty plea, Strout was sentenced to one-year probation and 50 hours of community service.

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Garrett J. Ripa, Field Office Director, ICE, Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), Miami Field Office, and Robert M. DeWitt, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

ICE, ERO Miami and FBI Miami investigated this case.  Assistant United States Attorney Daya Nathan is prosecuting it.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 22-cr-20428-Williams.