Louisiana among more cooperative states for immigration enforcement
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Louisiana is among some of the nation's more cooperative states when it comes to assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement with arresting and removing people living here illegally, according to an Axios analysis.
Why it matters: How law enforcement agencies cooperate with ICE often reflects any push and pull between local and state government, such as is the case in a blue dot amid a red state, like New Orleans.
The big picture: Efforts to arrest and remove unauthorized immigrants appear most aggressive in five southern states with Democratic-leaning cities, while deeply red, rural states are seeing less activity, according to Axios' analysis.
- Law enforcement agencies in Florida have been the most cooperative with ICE. The state has 295 deals known as 287 (g) agreements, which represent a willingness to work with ICE.
Zoom in: Louisiana has 10 such agreements either pending or in place.
- More may be on the way. Gov. Jeff Landry issued an executive order in May urging more local law enforcement to enter into 287 (g) agreements.
Yes, but: Both the New Orleans Police Department and the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office are generally bound from cooperating with ICE agents because of existing agreements.
Between the lines: The data analyzed by Axios and the locations of the agreements between federal and local authorities reflect a few simple truths about immigration enforcement across the U.S.
- There aren't nearly enough federal agents to meet President Trump's unprecedented deportation goal of deporting 1 million immigrants a year.
- In some places where the Trump administration faces a resource gap, local law enforcement agencies are unable or unwilling to meet the feds' demands or expand beyond their usual enforcement duties.
- With the nation's borders essentially locked down, the administration has shifted much of its deportation operations to the nation's interior.