Forest Service Manual Amendment Lets Its Officers Detain People Suspected of Immigration Violations Until DHS Arrives

An amendment to the Forest Service Manual’s law-enforcement chapter, effective June 11, 2025, says Forest Service law enforcement personnel “may assist the Department of Homeland Security by detaining persons suspected of immigration violations until the arrival of an agency with jurisdiction.” The same paragraph says that without a cross-designation from DHS, they “may not arrest persons for violations of most undocumented worker statutes,” and that they assist line officers with “monitoring and review of NFS field occupancy sites for compliance with Federal laws and regulations relating to undocumented workers.” The manual text does not mention campers, checkpoints, patrols or sharing visitor data.

This is the written provision on record when Forest Service officers took part in later ICE arrests on national forest land: 2026-07-26–ice-forest-service-caldwell-sheriff-wilson-creek-operation-13-arrested-pisgah-national-forest and 2026-09-05–forest-service-rangers-accompany-ice-arrest-of-five-men-camping-with-families-mount-baker-snoqualmie-national-forest; see also 2025-08-27–border-patrol-arrests-two-contract-firefighters-bear-gulch-fire-olympic-national-forest.