Sheriffs Push Back After ICE Tries to Recruit Deputies Amid Deportation Expansion: Report

Local sheriffs across the country are pushing back against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after the agency allegedly sent a recruitment email targeting deputies currently working in local agencies partnered with ICE.

The email, first reported by NBC News, reads in part:

"As someone who is currently supporting ICE through the 287(g) program, you understand the unique responsibility we carry in protecting our communities and upholding federal law. Your experience in state or local law enforcement brings invaluable insight and skills to this mission —qualities we need now more than ever."

The news comes as ICE prepares to hire 10,000 new agents using funds from a recent federal spending bill, with plans to expand immigration enforcement under the Trump administration. The push has also led ICE to actively recruit retired immigration enforcement officers to return to duty offering incentives including up to $50,000 in signing bonuses, full salaries, and continued pension payments.

Sheriff Grady Judd of Polk County, Florida, criticized ICE and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem over the email, telling NBC :

"We are your force multipliers, and this is how you thank us for helping do your job?. Kristi Noem needs to get on her big girl pants and do what's right. She needs to make sure that there's an apology"

The email in question offered up to $50,000 in signing bonuses and highlighted student loan repayment incentives of $60,000, urging deputies to leave their local posts and join ICE. "Your experience in state or local law enforcement brings invaluable insight and skills to this mission," the email stated.

DHS has not addressed specific concerns about the outreach but said in a statement that ICE is recruiting "law enforcement, veterans, and other patriots," including partners in the 287(g) program.

Other local leaders consulted by NBC News see the move as undermining trust. The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Florida, called the recruitment attempt "wrong", while Jonathan Thompson, executive director and CEO of the National Sheriffs' Association, warned that it could damage a relationship that had recently improved.

Beyond recruitment concerns, sheriffs have also raised broader issues with federal immigration enforcement. A recent Axios report revealed that many are raising concerns about the legal risks of holding individuals on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) without a judicial warrant, a strategy that has become common within local agencies.