Florida leads as state and local governments sign on for Trump’s mass deportations

The roster of local police departments and state agencies that have joined President Donald Trump’s drive for mass deportations has soared to more than 500, with nearly half from Florida.

That cooperation will be on display Thursday when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis joins officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to tout an operation that authorities say netted about 800 immigration arrests in less than a week.

Local police can make immigration arrests and detain people for immigration violations under specific agreements. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had 135 agreements across 21 states in December. That number has jumped to 506 deals across 38 states, with an additional 74 agencies pending approval.

As the Trump administration ramps up cooperation with state and local agencies, it is moving to retaliate against those that limit helping immigration authorities. On Monday, the president signed an executive order to publish a list of “sanctuary” jurisdictions and reiterated threats of criminal charges against state or local officials who thwart federal policy.

Advocates who oppose local officials getting into immigration enforcement say the practice violates a clause in the U.S. Constitution that makes federal, not state, authorities responsible for it.

“This is finding methods to terrorize communities,” said Katie Blankenship, an immigration attorney and co-founder of Sanctuary of the South, adding that local law enforcement officers aren’t trained to handle immigration issues “in any sort of just manner.”

Trumps deportation goals may be too big for ICE alone

ICE, which has about 6,000 deportation officers, needs help achieving Trump’s goal of deporting many of the roughly 11 million people in the country illegally, a conservative estimate.

Texas, whose Republican governor, Greg Abbott, has closely allied himself with Trump on immigration, has 76 enforcement agreements on record, the second-largest number of any state. They include one inked April 10 with the state National Guard. Texas has also signed an agreement with U.S. Customs and Border Protection for its National Guard to arrest people at the border.

Georgia and North Carolina have also joined Trump’s cause, but no state approaches Florida’s cooperation, with agencies from all 67 counties signing on. Some participating institutions appear to have little, if anything, to do with immigration enforcement, including the Florida Department of Lottery Services and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

No such agreements were signed during the Biden administration. Many of the new pacts adhere to a “task force model” under which police arrest immigrants on the streets and in communities, as opposed to a “jail enforcement model” under which ICE takes custody of people only when they are put in state and local jails or prisons.

Florida officials say many local agencies are still waiting for federal training. However, the latest ICE arrests, part of what the agency calls “Operation Tidal Wave,” show how state and local roles may grow.

One operation involved about 80 state troopers from the Florida Highway Patrol and targeted people in Jacksonville, Orlando and Tallahassee, as well as in Broward and Miami-Dade counties, said Bill Smith, president of FHP’s chapter of the Florida Police Benevolent Association. A spokesperson for Florida Highway Patrol did not respond to questions.

Authorities targeted people who faced final deportation orders and detained others on outstanding arrest warrants for previous offenses, like driving under the influence or without a license, Smith said.

“Florida is leading the nation in active cooperation with the Trump administration for immigration enforcement and deportation operations!” DeSantis said after ICE announced arrests Saturday.

Some immigrant advocates said most arrests were by local police officers and state highway patrol troopers, not ICE. People were detained during traffic stops or when leaving work. Some had no criminal records and were seeking asylum, or had work permits, advocates said.

One family is suddenly torn apart

Jessica Ramírez, general coordinator at the Florida Farm Workers Association, said that most of those arrested were men. In some cases, though not many, ICE officials knocked on the door of immigrants’ houses, she said.

“People are extremely afraid to go out and drive, afraid of the police,” said Ramírez. “The recommendation is to drive carefully, follow the rules, and not give the police a reason to stop them.”

Chica, a 25-year-old Guatemalan woman who asked to be identified only by her first name for fear of being detained, said her partner Fernando, the father of her 3-month-old baby, was detained Friday morning as he was riding in a car with three other immigrants to his construction job. Chica hasn’t heard from him since.

“Honey, the police caught us,” Fernando, a 20-year-old Guatemalan, texted her Friday at 7:47 a.m.

Chica said he had a pending asylum application and a work permit. Police asked the driver of the car to show his license but he did not have one. Officers then detained all four, including Fernando, who came to the U.S alone in 2020.

“I’m really worried. I can’t believe they caught him,” said Chica, who is now considering going back to Guatemala. “I’m afraid they’ll deport him and I’ll be left here without anyone’s help.”

Grady Judd, the sheriff of Polk County in central Florida, called the operation a “drop in the bucket” and voiced frustration with what he called the federal government’s inability to carry out arrests and removals on a larger scale.

“The reason I think that they were focusing on those ready for deportation is there’s no place to put volumes of people,” Judd said. “We’re eager to cooperate with them. But it’s a federal government system and process. And it’s not changing very rapidly.”

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Payne reported from Tallahassee, Florida.