Local Law Enforcement's Expanding Role in Immigration Enforcement

Trump Administration Revives 287(g) Program

The Trump administration is reviving and expanding a decades-old program that empowers local law enforcement agencies to assist with federal immigration enforcement. The 287(g) program named after a section of the 1996 immigration law that created it, allows the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to train and deputize local police and sheriff's officers to interrogate, arrest, and detain immigrants for potential deportation.

Mandatory Participation Proposals Across States

Republican lawmakers in about a dozen states are advancing proposals that could aid the Trump administration's deportation efforts by mandating or incentivizing local law enforcement agencies to participate in the 287(g) program. These measures aim to enhance cooperation between state and local authorities and federal immigration officials.

For instance, Florida recently passed legislation requiring all local agencies with county jails to join the 287(g) program or provide justification for not doing so. Similarly, after a Venezuelan immigrant unlawfully present in the U.S. killed a University of Georgia student, Georgia passed a law requiring local law enforcement agencies to apply for the program.

Expanding 287(g) Beyond Jails

Traditionally, the 287(g) program has been limited to immigrants already in custody or serving sentences. However, President Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, has expressed a desire to expand the program to include local task forces that can make arrests on the streets, reviving a model that the Obama administration discontinued due to concerns about racial profiling.

Concerns Over Racial Profiling and Civil Liberties

Advocates for immigrants have raised concerns about the potential for racial profiling, unlawful detentions, and a chilling effect on crime reporting within communities as a result of increased local involvement in immigration enforcement. Nayna Gupta, policy director at the American Immigration Council, warns that these agreements have a "track record of racial profiling, of sweeping in U.S. citizens or people who have lawful status, of having a chilling effect in terms of communities reporting crime to local law enforcement agencies."

Balancing Public Safety and Civil Liberties

Proponents of the 287(g) program argue that it enhances public safety by allowing local law enforcement to identify and detain immigrants who pose a threat to their communities. However, critics contend that the program can erode trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement, potentially making communities less safe.