By Alex Rickert and Mandy Miles
As immigration enforcement tactics continue to make headlines, some Florida sheriffs are asking the Feds to rein in their push for “mass deportations,” and instead focus on immigrants with criminal histories that include more than an immigration violation, which is a civil, not criminal, matter.
The notable shift in tone occurred during a March 16 virtual meeting of Florida’s State Immigration Enforcement Council. Created in 2025 by the Florida Legislature, the council advises the State Board of Immigration Enforcement (Gov. Ron DeSantis, Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia, Attorney General James Uthmeier and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson). It consists of four Republican sheriffs and four police chiefs handpicked by the board members, Senate President Ben Albritton and House Speaker Daniel Perez.
Led by Polk County Sheriff and council chairman Grady Judd, a former proponent of Florida’s stringent immigration crackdown throughout 2025, the council considered drafting a letter to President Donald Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson and U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, asking leaders in Washington for better guidance over which undocumented immigrants to target for deportation and to consider sparing those with clean criminal records.
“We are on the ground floor with this day in and day out — looking in the eyes of these folks that, yes, came here inappropriately,” Judd said. “But some came here inappropriately only to do better for themselves and their family.”
Judd provided the council with several anecdotal examples of “people who aren’t violating the law and want to work” – including one instance in which a woman in her late 20s was reportedly detained by ICE in the agency’s own waiting room while attempting to follow a path to citizenship after being brought to the U.S. from Colombia as a child.
“There needs to be a conversation, at some point in time, about the path forward for the appropriate people,” Judd said. “If you’re mentally ill or have a really bad health problem and you could potentially be a real drain on the system, we’ll keep you, but we’re getting rid of people who aren’t violating the law and want to work.”
Immigrants already in the country with clean records, he said, could instead be asked to meet a set of requirements, including paying a civil fine, learning English and providing proof of employment for adults and school enrollment for children.
“There are those here who are working hard, they have their kids in school, they’re going to church on Sunday, they’re not violating the law, and they’re living the American dream, and being very productive and doing good in this country,” he said. “Those are the folks we embrace, because we are a country of immigrants”
Members of the council voiced their support for Judd’s position, agreeing to review a draft letter to Washington. They said in most cases, their involvement with immigration came only after individuals were already detained or arrested for committing a separate crime.
“We’re not out doing immigration enforcement, raiding businesses and homes, but unfortunately when ICE gets involved, you have the collaterals,” said Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell. “Congress needs to get off their butts, and they need to fix it.”
“This is coming from a state that … (is) on the forefront and wholeheartedly support(s) good, effective immigration enforcement,” said Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri. “But what’s right is right, and what’s not is not. Going after this mom who has three kids and is just trying to make a living, that isn’t right, and they do need to fix it.”
All attending council members at the meeting agreed to move forward with the letter. Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters, the only member absent, later told multiple media outlets he does not “share or endorse” statements made during the meeting.
Judd backpedals, DeSantis slams sheriffs
A day after the meeting, Judd downplayed the idea that the letter represented a split from DeSantis and federal immigration policy – but doubled down that nonviolent immigrants should have a path to remain in the States.
“If you’re here illegally, and you take that risk … you’re going to be deported. Everyone that ICE says to deport, we deport,” he said in a March 17 press conference.
“But when it comes to immigration, one size doesn’t fit all.”
He reiterated support for those who met his requirements posed in the Enforcement Council’s meeting the day before – employed immigrants with no criminal history, free from government assistance programs and with “evidence of positive community integration.”
Arresting undocumented immigrants with criminal backgrounds, he said, would already provide “two lifetimes worth of work” for law enforcement.
“We can’t deal with 10 to 18 million illegal people all at once. All we’re doing is setting priorities and giving an exit ramp to those who came here, inappropriately and illegally, but to enjoy the American dream,” he said. “Our job is to provide ideas, input and data … to calm the waters and say ‘Hey, there’s a better way to do this.’”
The sheriffs’ stance comes days after multiple reports that White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair privately told Republicans to shift their messaging away from “mass deportations” and toward the removal of violent criminals.
But it didn’t sit well with DeSantis, who slammed his own handpicked council at a press conference on March 19.
“This idea that unless you’re an axe murderer you should be able to stay, that is not consistent with our laws, and it’s also not good policy,” he said. “My job as governor is to do what’s best for the people, not what any one person who gets elected in one county thinks.
“Who does Tom Homan cite as the way to do this? He cites Florida, without hesitation.”
Keys law enforcement leaders weigh in
Speaking to the Keys Weekly by phone, Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay said he couldn’t endorse the council’s letter before reading a completed draft, but said he agreed with some comments from the council.
“I’ve said all along that what their first intention should have been is what they’re doing (now),” he said. “There are a lot of really good people, and most come here just looking for a better way of life.
“There should be some clear, reasonable path to citizenship, but that has to go two ways,” he added. “We have to have a clear, defined cap, and you have to go through, declare you’re here, get a job, be a good steward to the community, and you should not be dependent on the taxpayers. … Once you know the rules, play by the rules.”
Asked for his message to those detained or deported in recent months while already attempting to follow those same “rules,” Ramsay said those following a legal path to citizenship through the court system should be “first on the list” to be considered.
“The rules shouldn’t change mid-stream,” he said. “If you’re going to change the rules, (those people) should be grandfathered in under the rules that we told them and should be first to be processed.”
Key West Police Chief Sean Brandenburg told the Keys Weekly, “The Key West Police Department remains committed to upholding all applicable laws and regulations in strict accordance with the guidance set forth by the governor-appointed council.”
While that council debates the draft of its letter to the Trump administration, Key West police continue to prioritize public safety, despite an influx of camera-toting onlookers every time they make a traffic stop for speeding, with bystanders videoing every encounter, assuming it’s immigration-related, a source inside the police department told the Keys Weekly.
