<\/p>\n
Demonstrators hold signs that read \u201cLOVE THY NEIGHBOR\u201d and \u201cVOTE AGAINST 287(g)\u201d during a press conference hosted by ACLU Florida, Florida Rising, The Florida Immigrant Coalition and Family Action Network Movement on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Miami.<\/p>\n
D.A. Varela<\/p>\n
dvarela@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Dozens of people poured into Miami City Hall last summer to urge commissioners to vote against an immigration enforcement agreement with ICE, warning that partnering with the federal agency could jeopardize the wellbeing of residents in Miami, a \u201ccity of immigrants.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite public outcry<\/a>, the commission voted 3-2 in June to sign what\u2019s called a 287(g) agreement<\/a>, allowing Miami police officers to be trained to carry out immigration enforcement functions under the direct supervision of ICE. Now, the city finds itself in a position where it could \u2014 if it wanted to \u2014 undo its partnership with the agency.<\/p>\n All it would take is a vote of the City Commission, according to Mayor Eileen Higgins, a Democrat who defeated a Trump-backed candidate in December.<\/p>\n Higgins is starting her time in office at a moment when the national climate on immigration has reached a fever pitch following the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti<\/a> at the hands of federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, and also the detainment of a 5-year-old boy<\/a> wearing a Spider-Man backpack and bunny hat that stirred outrage. On the local level, tens of thousands of people in South Florida<\/a> faced an immediate threat of deportation just last week after the Department of Homeland Security terminated Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. A federal judge has paused the DHS order.<\/p>\n While other U.S. cities have been the sites of large-scale ICE raids, Higgins said Miami has not been immune from enforcement and that ICE \u201chas been here all year long.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTheir tactics may seem quieter than they seemed in Minneapolis, but they\u2019re just as devastating on the families\u2019 lives that they\u2019re ruining,\u201d she said in a recent interview with the Miami Herald.<\/p>\n The makeup of the City Commission has changed in recent weeks following the December election, with three out of five of the current city commissioners having expressed opposition to 287(g). Higgins, who doesn\u2019t have a vote on the commission but does have veto power, said she would green-light legislation undoing the ICE agreement if the commission were to approve it.<\/p>\n \u201cI would happily sign it,\u201d Higgins said.<\/p>\n Yet, even though the mayor can sponsor legislation, Higgins said she won\u2019t be bringing forward a proposal to undo 287(g), saying the ball is in commissioners\u2019 court.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s their choice,\u201d Higgins said. \u201cThey have to do that. They have to take the initiative. They voted for it. They have to undo it.\u201d<\/p>\n But the specter of political consequences has officials in Miami feeling gun-shy about taking a public stance that could incite the wrath of the state and federal governments. So far, none of Miami\u2019s five commissioners say they are planning to call for a vote to exit 287(g). A couple commissioners explained their hesitation by pointing to the city of Key West, where officials were threatened by the Florida attorney general<\/a> with removal from office after they voted to void their 287(g) agreement.<\/p>\n One of those Key West commissioners, Samuel Kaufman, told the Herald that Florida cities shouldn\u2019t be afraid of poking the bear.<\/p>\n \u201cThe bear is rabid and out and creating terror in our community, so we have to put the bear back in the cage,\u201d Kaufman said in an interview.<\/p>\n After the attorney general issued his warning, Key West officials voted to reenter the 287(g) agreement<\/a>. But Kaufman said he would like for the courts to clarify whether the state legitimately has the authority to remove elected officials from office in such a scenario.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat the attorney general did in instilling fear in my colleagues, it worked. The attorney general was successful, and it\u2019s very unfortunate,\u201d Kaufman said. \u201cBecause public policy should not be driven by fear.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018A very hard decision\u2019<\/p>\n City Attorney George Wysong had cautioned last summer that \u201cthere could be real consequences\u201d to commissioners voting against the agreement, referring to repercussions at the state and federal level. That included the potential of losing millions of dollars in funding, Wysong said.<\/p>\n But a lawsuit filed by the city of South Miami \u2014 which was still ongoing at the time of the Miami commission vote in June \u2014 raised questions about whether Miami needed to sign an ICE agreement at all.<\/p>\n South Miami had sued Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, seeking clarity on whether it was mandatory for local governments to enroll in 287(g). A judge dismissed the lawsuit<\/a>, but the state conceded during oral arguments that there was a difference between \u201can action that impedes, versus inaction.\u201d In other words, cities in Florida aren\u2019t necessarily required to sign a 287(g) agreement, but they can\u2019t take a stand against it.<\/p>\n \u201cThey basically confirmed there was no mandate,\u201d South Miami Mayor Javier Fern\u00e1ndez said in a brief interview this week.<\/p>\n For reasons that are still unclear, the city administration in Miami seemingly felt a sense of urgency to vote on the ICE agreement in June, despite the fact that the South Miami lawsuit was still active and several other Miami-Dade cities had not \u2014 and still haven\u2019t \u2014 signed a 287(g) agreement.<\/p>\n The June vote fell along party lines: Commissioners Christine King and Damian Pardo, both Democrats, voted against signing the agreement. Commissioners Ralph Rosado, Miguel Angel Gabela and Joe Carollo \u2014 all Republicans \u2014 voted in favor of partnering with ICE.<\/p>\n But things have changed since then. Carollo has since been replaced by political newcomer Rolando Escalona, a Republican who immigrated to the U.S. from Cuba about a decade ago.<\/p>\n In an interview with the Herald, Escalona, whose district includes Little Havana, said he is in favor of strong borders and believes everyone should follow the law. However, Escalona said he does \u201cnot agree\u201d with 287(g) and that he would consider voting to cancel the agreement if another commissioner were to bring the item forward. He said he would need more information from the city attorney about potential consequences before doing so.<\/p>\n Escalona pointed to the detainment of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos<\/a>, which sparked outrage across the country.<\/p>\n \u201cIt really, really broke my heart,\u201d Escalona said, adding: \u201cThat could be me just a couple of years ago. So it\u2019s hard. It\u2019s a very hard decision.\u201d<\/p>\n To date, Police Chief Manuel Morales said just three Miami police officers have been trained under 287(g) and that none have been called on to assist in immigration enforcement operations. Higgins told the Herald that under her watch, no additional Miami police officers beyond the initial three will be trained under 287(g).<\/p>\n That\u2019s a fraction compared to the 334 county sheriff\u2019s deputies who\u2019ve been trained under 287(g), according to a Miami-Dade Sheriff\u2019s Office spokesperson. That agency, headed by Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, said last week that, \u201cNo deputies from MDSO have been called on for deportation operations.\u201d<\/p>\n In the 2024 sheriff\u2019s race, Cordero-Stutz, a Republican endorsed by Trump, defeated Democratic nominee James Reyes, whom Higgins recently tapped as Miami city manager<\/a>.<\/p>\n Eileen Higgins speaks during her installation ceremony as the mayor of Miami at the Miami Dade College Wolfson Campus auditorium on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. PHOTO BY AL DIAZ adiaz@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
City Attorney George Wysong at a Miami City Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 17, 2025. D.A. Varela dvarela@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
Miami City Commissioner Rolando Escalona during a meeting at Miami City Hall on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. Alexia Fodere for Miami Herald <\/p>\n
Miami Chief of Police Manuel A. Morales speaks to the media during a press conference discussing mid-year crime stats on Thursday, July 17, 2025. D.A. Varela dvarela@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n
City Manager James Reyes appears during the Miami City Commission meeting at Miami City Hall on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. Alexia Fodere for Miami Herald <\/p>\n