July 19, 2025

Federal immigration enforcement should focus on violent criminals

PERF members,

Immigration enforcement has been a central focus of the Trump Administration’s first six months in office, and the new budget bill will dramatically increase those efforts. The bill will increase funding for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) by more than 150 percent, from roughly $10 billion to roughly $27.7 billion.

The administration initially said that immigration enforcement efforts would focus on violent criminals, something that most Americans—including police chiefs—support. However, according to the Associated Press, “The latest ICE statistics show that as of June 29, there were 57,861people detained by ICE, 41,495—71.7 percent—of whom had no criminal convictions. . . . Each detainee is assigned a threat level by ICE on a scale of 1 to 3, with one being the highest. Those without a criminal record are classified as having ‘no ICE threat level.’ As of June 23, the latest data available, 84 percent of people detained at 201 facilities nationwide were not given a threat level. Another 7 percent had been graded as a level 1 threat, 4 percent were level 2, and 5 percent were level 3.”

There has been public debate about ICE agents wearing masks and not displaying agency identification during operations. On one hand, ICE agents are concerned they may be identified and doxxed by those opposed to immigration enforcement. At the same time, the community sees masked individuals claiming to be federal agents detaining people. Often bystanders can’t be sure that masked individuals in plain clothes are law enforcement officers, and in fact there have been several instances of people impersonating ICE agents to commit crimes. I understand ICE agents’ safety concerns, and local law enforcement agencies have long dealt with this issue when making difficult decisions about releasing an officer’s name after a critical incident.

If violent criminals were the only people who have had enforcement actions taken against them or their legal status revoked, I think the public would be very supportive, and I don’t think ICE agents would be as concerned about concealing their identities. But these actions are being taken against farm workers, construction staffers, caregivers, restaurant employees, and other integral community members who are not a threat to the public. ICE has faced resistance when carrying out some of these enforcement actions, and I think agents’ mask-wearing has at times heightened tension.

We had a lively discussion about immigration enforcement at our Annual Meeting in May, as I wrote to you then:

“Attendees had different perspectives, but they generally expressed a couple concerns.

“First, they worry that greater federal enforcement efforts are increasing fear of law enforcement in some communities where local police have built trust. Without that trust, people may be less likely to report being victims of or witnesses to crimes. Local chiefs and sheriffs said they are making an extra effort to reach out to their communities to maintain trust and distinguish between the roles of federal and local law enforcement agencies.

“Second, attendees said they greatly value their existing federal partnerships and are concerned that agents with the FBI, ATF, DEA, and other federal agencies will be taken off violent crime task forces to work on immigration enforcement initiatives.”

Metropolitan Nashville Chief John Drake, who serves as PERF’s President, emphasized the importance of building trust at our Annual Meeting. “Local law enforcement has to enforce the law on criminals, those who victimize people in our communities, regardless of where they’re from and whether they’re here legally or illegally,” Chief Drake said. “But we can’t do blanket immigration enforcement because it destroys trust, and we need the public safety trust of our residents. Crime flourishes when there’s silence. If people have been victimized by crime and they don’t report it to local law enforcement, how do we help those people? What if people are raped or robbed, but they’re afraid to report it because they think they’re going to get deported?”

The fear of contacting first responders played out tragically two months ago in La Vergne, a community just outside Nashville. News station WSMV reported that Police Chief Christopher Moews told a community town hall meeting that “a six-month-old baby in La Vergne died after they were found unresponsive and their caretaker waited to call 911. Moews believes that the delay was because the caretaker was afraid to call emergency services due to his immigration status.”

I think the concerns shared at our Annual Meeting have only been amplified in the weeks since. Last month I spoke with LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell and Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna about demonstrations and rioting in their city related to federal immigration enforcement actions. With a dramatic increase in immigration enforcement activity, I think more demonstrations are likely. And police chiefs have told me that communication between local and federal law enforcement has diminished in many cities. When the National Guard deployed to Los Angeles last month, Sheriff Luna told me he was worried about a “Kent State–type situation.” I share that concern, particularly if we continue on our current path.

I believe Congress should pass comprehensive immigration reform, perhaps along the lines of the bipartisan bill that passed the Senate in 2013. That measure would have strengthened border security while offering a path to citizenship for some without legal status. But it seems unlikely that a similar measure will pass a polarized Congress in the near future, and local police chiefs and sheriffs are worried that public unrest—like we’ve seen in Los Angeles—will escalate. So I encourage the Trump Administration to consider shifting immigration enforcement efforts toward violent criminals while prioritizing the protection of productive members of our communities.

And it’s essential to remember the humanity of all members of our community. As Kewaunee County (Wisconsin) Sheriff Matthew Joski commented earlier this year, “There are those who would say that it was their choice to come here illegally, but you must understand that for many, their journey was out of desperate necessity, navigated in an immigration environment which, at best, was ambiguous and at worse, inaccessible.” It will take congressional action to systemically improve that immigration environment, but in the meantime, federal enforcement should be focused on those who are causing our communities harm.

Best,

Chuck