20-02-2025
Sheriffs Gualtieri, Judd picked to guide state's immigration crackdown
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri and Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd have been appointed to the new State Immigration Enforcement Council as part of the state's efforts to strengthen federal measures against unauthorized immigration.
The council was created last week under the new immigration law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. It will assist the State Board of Immigration Enforcement by providing guidance on enforcing federal immigration laws.
In an announcement, state Senate president Ben Albritton called Gualtieri and Judd 'two of the most experienced and well-respected law enforcement officers in the country.'
'When you have the right people with a seat at the table, and everyone works hard at listening, it always yields the best results,' Albritton said.
The council will work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to seek training opportunities and improve participation in federal immigration programs. It will also advise the state on local law enforcement efforts and recommend financial support; better information sharing between state, local and federal agencies; and ways to increase detention bed space.
The Council has eight members: four police chiefs, each appointed by DeSantis; the state's commissioner of agriculture, attorney general and chief financial officer; and four sheriffs, with the Senate president and House speaker each appointing two. The council must have its first meeting by April 1.
Judd welcomed Albritton's support in his role.
'President Albritton has been a friend for decades, and I appreciate the trust he is placing in me to serve in this role,' Judd said in a statement.
Also this week, House Speaker Daniel Perez announced the appointment of Duval County Sheriff T.K. Waters and Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell to the council.
In Florida, advocates and nonprofits spoke out against the state's initiative.
Renata Bozzetto, deputy director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, said tasking local sheriffs with immigration enforcement comes at a high cost for Floridians. The new orders will require $300 million in state funding.
'These appointments hinder public safety by building distrust, tasking law enforcement agencies with sweeping surveillance and punishment and by sending the message that local sheriffs' new priority is to play politics,' Bozzeto said.
Florida's appointments come as thousands of immigrants nationwide will see their processes delayed after the White House ordered an indefinite hold on applications from people paroled under certain immigration programs.
The hold was implemented in order to vet security and fraud concerns, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement to the Tampa Bay Times.
The programs affected are Uniting for Ukraine, Family Reunification Parole, and the Processes for Haitians, Cubans, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans, known as CHNV.
Half a million people are living in the United States under the CHNV program. As of September 2023, more than 158,000 Ukranians had been welcomed into the United States. The Biden administration also created new family reunification parole processes for El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia, and updated the parole processes for Cuba and Haiti.
The hold does not mean the elimination of certain legal processes, such as the Cuban Adjustment Act or political asylum petitions.
Danielle Hernandez, an immigration attorney in Ybor City, said people who entered under Biden-era policies are worried. The announcement of their pending applications being paused leaves them in limbo, she said.
'I do not really have a clear path forward aside from letting them know we are waiting for clear communication,' Hernandez said. 'These immigrants came into our country in the most legal manner possible and are now used as a political scapegoat.'
