Florida immigration arrests have quietly surged, with state and local agencies at the forefront
Nearly 39,000 immigrants were arrested in Florida in 416 days as 347 agencies joined ICE partnerships under expanded 287(g) agreements.
- Nearly 39,000 immigrants were arrested in Florida in the 416 days beginning January 20, 2025, through March 11, 2026, averaging 93 daily arrests and tripling the 11,088 recorded during the preceding comparable period under President Donald Trump's second term.
- Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis championed 287 agreements granting state and local agencies immigration enforcement powers; participation expanded to more than 1,700 across 41 states, backed by Department of Homeland Security incentives up to $100,000 for vehicles.
- Immigration attorney Vilerka Bilbao, representing 23 detained clients in Jacksonville, reports officers use "pretext" stops like broken taillights to initiate arrests, noting agencies must "show the numbers" to DeSantis and federal officials.
- State agencies including the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission refuse to share arrest records, citing an ICE directive stating information developed under agreements is "under the control of ICE" and requires federal approval.
- Families report separation as Lee County deputies detained a 44-year-old Guatemalan man and his 21-year-old son near Fort Myers in February with pending asylum cases; DHS disputes their legal status, citing 2019 removal orders.
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Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics
Good Friday morning. Florida Democrats are gearing up for one of the party’s marquee events of the election cycle as Leadership Blue returns to Central Florida next month. The Florida Democratic Party announced this week that its annual Leadership Blue Weekend will take place July 17-19 at Disney’s Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs in Lake Buena Vista. The multiday conference is designed to align candidates, activists and party leaders arou…
Associated Press News
Florida immigration arrests have quietly surged, with state and local agencies at the forefront
Trump’s immigration crackdown has met with fierce resistance in Democratic-led sanctuary cities, where police are forbidden from assisting and many locals view the masked federal agents as an invading force.
Florida immigration arrests quietly surge, with state and local agencies at forefront
The surge in Florida immigration arrests during Trump’s second term has largely flown under the public’s radar, as many start as run-of-the-mill police traffic stops, the public seems more supportive of the initiative, and participating state and local agencies are roundly rejecting requests for arrest records and body camera video at the behest of the…
Florida Immigration Arrests Surge: State and Local Agencies Lead
Since January 2025, Florida has recorded nearly 39,000 immigration arrests — more than triple the pace of the previous administration. State and local law enforcement agencies, not just federal ICE agents, are driving those numbers through a sweeping expansion of federal partnerships, state funding, and coordinated operations that have fundamentally changed how immigration enforcement works on the ground. UTICA, NY — Florida has become the mos…
Florida immigration arrests surge; state and local agencies at the forefront
On a late March afternoon, a Florida Fish and Wildlife officer pulled up to a Guatemalan couple walking their dog in a park in the affluent beachside community of Bonita Springs, along the Gulf Coast. From his car, he asked to see the husband’s identification and then ordered them to head toward the park exit, according to the wife. When they arrived in the parking lot, the officer arrested the husband on a bogus charge, said his wife, who spoke…
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