13-05-2025
- Politics
- Indianapolis Star
These Indiana agencies are officially partnering with ICE to enforce immigration law
Since President Donald Trump's inauguration, four Indiana law enforcement agencies have signed up to participate in the federal government's 287(g) Program, which allows their officers to enforce certain immigration law.
The program allows local law enforcement to partner with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, granting trained deputies the right to enforce immigration laws within their jurisdiction. It prioritizes the arrest and detention of people in the country illegally who are accused or convicted of crimes.
ICE offers law enforcement agencies three models for enforcing immigration law:
Earlier this year, the Indiana General Assembly attempted to approve legislation that would have allowed Indiana's Department of Homeland Security to disburse grants to law enforcement agencies seeking to participate in the 287(g) program. The funds would help pay salaries and overtime for officers who go through the training, while federal funds would pay for the training and equipment costs.
Both pieces of legislation, Senate Bill 430 and House Bill 1158, ultimately failed to be approved by the Indiana General Assembly.
Here's a list of the four Indiana law enforcement agencies that have signed up for the government's 287(g) program as of May 12, 2025, according to data from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement website.
On April 10, 2025, the Greens Fork Police Department, which serves a small rural town in eastern Indiana, signed up to participate in ICE's Task Force Model.
It's the only municipality law enforcement agency in the state to sign up for the federal government's 287(g) program.
The town of Greens Fork has a total population of 335, according to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau data, the most recent available for the town.
Out of the 335 people living in the city, four people were identified as Hispanic or Latino, and all foreign-born people living in the city were considered naturalized citizens, according to the U.S. Census Bureau data.
Population breakdown, according to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau data:
The Greens Fork Police Department is the only law enforcement agency in Wayne County that has signed up to join the federal government's 287(g) program.
At the beginning of the year, the Wayne County Sheriff's Office announced it was in compliance with all of ICE's requests and is following all protocols after the Center for Immigration Studies, an independent, nonpartisan, and non-profit research organization, mistakenly labeled it a sanctuary county.
The county has since rectified the issue.
On March 26, 2025, the Noble County Sheriff's Office, which serves a rural county northeast of Fort Wayne, signed up to participate in ICE's Warrant Service Officer Model.
Noble County Sheriff Max Weber told local media in March that the county had already been working with ICE.
Noble County Jail Commander Jenny Cummins shared that the county books at least one non-citizen into jail at least once a week.
The county is estimated to serve 47,417 people, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau Data.
Population breakdown, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau data:
On March 17, 2025, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office, which serves a rural county an hour south of Gary, Indiana, signed up to participate in ICE's Warrant Service Officer Model.
The county is estimated to serve 33,198 people, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau.
Population breakdown, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau data:
On March 3, 2025, the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, which serves the county north of Indianapolis, signed up to participate in ICE's Jail Enforcement Model.
The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office made headlines earlier this year when it became the first Indiana county to sign up for to be part of the 287g program.
"By strengthening our partnership with ICE and other federal agencies, we will address criminal activities linked to illegal immigration," Chief Deputy John Lowes, who will oversee the initiative, said in a news release.
The county is estimated to serve 371,645 people, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau.
Population breakdown, according to the 2023 U.S. Census Bureau data:
