type: timeline_event ICE agreements with local police departments under Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act exploded to more than 1,400, with over 1,100 new agreements signed in 2025 alone. Under Biden there had been 135 such agreements; at the end of Trump's first term there were 150. The tenfold expansion effectively deputizes local police as immigration agents, blurring the line between community policing and federal immigration enforcement.
Civil rights organizations warned the expansion destroys trust between immigrant communities and local law enforcement, making residents afraid to report crimes, cooperate as witnesses, or seek emergency services. Research has consistently shown that entangling local policing with immigration enforcement leads to decreased public safety in immigrant communities, as victims and witnesses of crimes avoid contact with law enforcement for fear of deportation—allowing violent criminals to operate with impunity in the communities they prey upon.