Sanctuary jurisdictions across the country refused to honor nearly 18,000 ICE detainers on illegal aliens arrested for local crimes in 2025, former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem revealed during testimony before the House Judiciary Committee.
ICE detainers are requests to local law enforcement that federal agents be notified when an illegal alien is scheduled for release from custody. The goal is to ensure agents can arrest illegal aliens in the safety of a jail rather than on the streets of American communities.
The figure of 17,864 refused detainers demonstrates the extent to which sanctuary jurisdictions, particularly sanctuary states like California, New York and Illinois, are working to shield illegal aliens from federal immigration law.
The most recent case of an illegal alien being repeatedly protected by local officials involves 32 year old Abdul Jalloh of Sierra Leone, who is accused of murdering 41 year old Stephanie Minter, a mother, at a Fairfax County, Virginia bus stop in what investigators describe as a random attack.
Jalloh had more than 40 prior arrests before Minter's murder, but Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano repeatedly dropped charges against him.
A new report from local reporter Nick Minock reveals that Descano's office was warned about Jalloh on several occasions but failed to keep him off the streets.
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger has suggested that she will not honor an active ICE detainer on Jalloh unless agents secure a judicial warrant from a criminal court judge in the state.
"DHS should request a signed judicial warrant to ensure this violent criminal is deported," a spokesperson for Spanberger's office told Minock in a statement.
The maneuver by Spanberger's office is one often used by sanctuary officials who are aware that ICE is not required by law to secure judicial warrants for illegal aliens.
California Governor Gavin Newsom recently used the same tactic to defend not honoring an ICE detainer on an illegal alien accused of killing 11 year old Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz.
"As we have repeatedly said: The state coordinates with ICE on the deportation of convicted criminals. California honors federal criminal warrants. Nothing prohibits the federal government from doing its job in this case," a spokesman for Newsom's office said.
The blood of Stephanie Minter and countless other victims is on the hands of sanctuary politicians who prioritize protecting illegal aliens over American citizens. America First patriots must demand comprehensive immigration restriction that ends all forms of illegal and legal immigration, fully militarizes the border with troops authorized to use force, and dramatically increases internal removals of every illegal alien regardless of criminal record. Half measures and judicial warrant games have cost American lives, and only total enforcement of immigration law will restore safety to our communities.
