Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the Trump administration is drafting plans to stop processing foreign travelers at airports located in sanctuary cities, but the possible change has some former officials questioning the political implications.
Mullin revealed on “Hannity” Tuesday night that officials are “currently drawing up plans” to pull Customs officers from international airports in jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement efforts amid escalating anti-ICE protests outside a facility in Newark, New Jersey.
He then doubled down Thursday, telling Fox News host Brian Kilmeade that while his department won&#8217;t &#8220;halt&#8221; international flights, it will pull Customs officers away from processing those passengers as they attempt to enter the United States.
&#8220;When we have situations like what&#8217;s happening in New Jersey right now, when we have to prioritize where we put federal employees because local law enforcement won&#8217;t help protect their streets &#8230; and keep them from barricading and causing harm to our employees, then we have to decide where we&#8217;re going to prioritize our federal employees,&#8221; Mullin said.
&#8220;What we&#8217;re saying is we just won&#8217;t be able to process them because we don&#8217;t have officers there,&#8221; he added.
The idea immediately sparked concerns from former Homeland Security officials, who questioned the political fallout and consequences of such a move ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which the United States is set to co-host.
Former Homeland Security advisor Charles Marino said that while there&#8217;s a need for &#8220;consequences for sanctuary cities, there&#8217;s no way this would be allowed to happen with the World Cup coming up.&#8221;
&#8220;The political pressure on the admin from FIFA, the international community, stadiums, local governments, and businesses would be immense. It also undercuts President Trump, who routinely takes credit for bringing the World Cup to the U.S. To do this now is all risk and no reward,&#8221; he said.
Trump&#8217;s Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also appeared skeptical of the proposal.
“We shouldn’t shut down air travel in a state that doesn’t agree with our politics,&#8221; Duffy said during a Congressional hearing last week.
Another former Homeland Security official, who was granted anonymity to speak more freely on the issue, said the Trump administration is trying to play &#8220;hardball,&#8221; adding that it&#8217;s &#8220;the federal government&#8217;s right&#8221; to carry out such a plan. The official, however, warned that &#8220;it is only going to piss off the unaffiliated voters and at the end of the day will not change sanctuary jurisdictions.&#8221;
&#8220;Democrats will still vote for sanctuary,&#8221; the former official said.
Former ICE New York field office deputy director Scott Mechkowski said that Trump&#8217;s base will likely support that move, but that Mullin will need to focus his messaging to present it to the general public as a last-ditch effort to force cooperation from sanctuary cities.
Mechkowski said Mullin has to &#8220;frame&#8221; the initiative as &#8220;an extreme measure.&#8221; He pointed to the Trump administration&#8217;s attempts to &#8220;withhold&#8221; federal funds from sanctuary cities, an effort that has been repeatedly blocked by court orders.
It would also have &#8220;devastating effects,&#8221; spelling financial trouble for sanctuary cities, which he expects would cave easily to meet the Trump administration&#8217;s demands as a result.
&#8220;I think they need to realize that [Mullin] means business,&#8221; Mechkowski said.
Mullin first mentioned the proposal in April, presenting it as a tactic to force sanctuary cities to play ball with federal immigration agents.
“I believe sanctuary cities is not lawful,” Mullin told Fox News’ Bret Baier at the time. “I don’t think they’re able to do that, and so we’re gonna take a hard look at this.”
“If they’re sanctuary cities, should they really be processing Customs into their city?” Mullin asked. “If they’re a sanctuary city and they’re receiving international flights, and we’re asking them to partner with us at the airport, but once they walk out of the airport they’re not gonna enforce immigration policy, maybe we need to have a really hard look at that because we need to focus on cities that want to work with us.”

Newark Liberty International Airport

Mullin’s Proposal To Pull Customs From Airports Gets Mixed Reviews

Airports

Department of Homeland Security

Immigration

Markwayne Mullin

Politics

Sanctuary Cities

Transportation

Travel

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

World Cup

The Justice Department filed lawsuits against sanctuary states Maine, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington on Wednesday over their refusal to grant undercover license plates to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
ICE uses the license plates to arrest fugitives, conduct surveillance, investigate missing persons and missing child cases, and carry out abduction investigations involving dangerous actors, according to the lawsuits. If they don&#8217;t have the license plates, it compromises their arrests and the safety of the federal officers, who continue to face significant threats.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement, &#8220;By denying undercover license plates to DHS [Department of Homeland Security] components, including ICE, while issuing them to their own state agencies, these governors are pursuing discriminatory and obstructionist policies against federal law enforcement.&#8221;
&#8220;These actions undermine federal immigration enforcement, allow dangerous criminals to escape justice, and terrorize American communities,&#8221; he added.
In Washington, the state&#8217;s Department of Licensing &#8220;began affirmatively denying requests by DHS to obtain and renew undercover license plates and registrations&#8221; around October 2025, according to the federal lawsuit. When the state agency received a request for undercover license plates from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), officials responded in January 2026 by &#8220;suspending the issuance and renewal of undercover license plates for DHS-affiliated entities for an indeterminate period.&#8221;
Washington Attorney General Nicholas Brown wrote to the Department of Justice in May that “[t]he Washington State Department of Licensing voluntarily provides hundreds of undercover plates to federal agencies each year,&#8221; listing the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Marshals, and the Secret Service while failing to include ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), according to the lawsuit. 

Now, the state is &#8220;reviewing DHS&#8217;s activities&#8221; and asking that the agency hand in &#8220;all current undercover plates and obtain new registrations for each vehicle,&#8221; the lawsuit states. Further, the state is &#8220;not permitting renewals of existing undercover plates for any DHS subcomponents.&#8221;
State officials are also determining whether DHS is in compliance with the “Keep Washington Working Act,&#8221; which states that “no state agency, including law enforcement, may use agency funds, facilities, property, equipment, or personnel to investigate, enforce, cooperate with, or assist in the investigation or enforcement of any federal registration or surveillance programs or any other laws, rules, or policies that target Washington residents solely on the basis of race, religion, immigration, or citizenship status, or national or ethnic origin,&#8221; according to the lawsuit.
Former ICE New York field office deputy director Scott Mechkowski called the Democrat-run state&#8217;s actions &#8220;a deliberate decision to endanger federal officers and another tactic to doxx ICE.&#8221;
&#8220;Every law enforcement officer in America, DEA, FBI, ATF, U.S. Marshals, state and local are entitled to undercover capacity for their safety. No one debates that,&#8221; Mechkowski said.
He continued: &#8220;So explain to me why ICE agents are the only federal law enforcement officers these governors think deserve to be exposed?&#8221;
The Massachusetts Attorney General&#8217;s office told The Daily Wire that it is &#8220;reviewing the complaint and will defend the RMV [Registry of Motor Vehicles] policy to the greatest extent possible.&#8221;
The other accused states didn&#8217;t respond to The Daily Wire&#8217;s requests for comment.

Acting Attorney General Blanche Testifies Before Senate Appropriations Subcommittee

Trump DOJ Launches New Battle Against Sanctuary States Over ICE Measures

Trump Admin Sues Sanctuary States For Refusing To Grant Critical Law Enforcement Tool To ICE

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Lawsuit

Todd Blanche

The Trump administration is making plans to pull Customs officers from international airports as a punishment for sanctuary cities that refuse to play ball with federal immigration authorities.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin revealed on &#8220;Hannity&#8221; Tuesday night that officials are &#8220;currently drawing up plans&#8221; to stop the processing of international travelers into sanctuary airports. The latest update on the proposed action comes amid a days-long anti-ICE protest taking place outside a federal immigration detention center in Newark.
Several Democrats, including New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill, have joined protesters outside the Delaney Hall detention center, where agitators have clashed with federal authorities. Some demonstrators have attempted to block entrances to the facility as local police refused to respond, Mullin said.
Authorities arrested some of the rioters Tuesday night for allegedly assaulting, resisting, and impeding federal officers, according to DHS.
Earlier Tuesday, Mullin met with White House officials to discuss his potential airport action, he said.
&#8220;I said If they&#8217;re going to not allow us to go out and arrest the worst of the worst and then when we call for assistance at the facilities that the street it belongs to the city, if it belonged to us we would take care of it, but it belongs to the city and they&#8217;re barricading our employees from coming in and out of the facility, then why are we processing international flights into the airport there?&#8221; Mullin said.
&#8220;We are currently — which we are not initiating yet — but we are currently drawing up plans to say listen, in these sanctuary cities, where the local radical left Democrats aren&#8217;t allowing us to do our job and enforce federal laws, then we shouldn&#8217;t be processing international flights into their cities either because they don&#8217;t want us to enforce immigration, but they want us to process immigration at their facilities? Nothing about that makes sense to me,&#8221; he added.
Mullin first teased the proposal in April as a way to force sanctuary cities to cooperate with federal immigration agents.
“I believe sanctuary cities is not lawful,” Mullin told Fox News’ Bret Baier at the time. “I don’t think they’re able to do that, and so we’re gonna take a hard look at this.”
“If they’re sanctuary cities, should they really be processing Customs into their city?” Mullin asked. “If they’re a sanctuary city and they’re receiving international flights, and we’re asking them to partner with us at the airport, but once they walk out of the airport they’re not gonna enforce immigration policy, maybe we need to have a really hard look at that because we need to focus on cities that want to work with us.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Mullin says DHS is &#8220;drawing up plans&#8221; to stop Customs processing from international airports in sanctuary cities <a href="https://t.co/MYuywR6vZL">pic.twitter.com/MYuywR6vZL</a>
— Jennie Taer (@JennieSTaer) <a href="https://twitter.com/JennieSTaer/status/2059631005716156852?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The potential move comes just weeks ahead of the FIFA World Cup, which is expected to draw millions of foreign travelers to the United States.

U.S. Customs And Border Protection Symbol

DHS Is ‘Drawing Up Plans’ To Punish Sanctuary Cities With Major Airport Move

Anti-ICE

Immigration and Customs Enforcement

New Jersey

When Zohran Mamdani served in the New York State Assembly, he voted for a plan to hire more teachers and build more classrooms in New York City to keep class sizes small.
As mayor, Mamdani has other priorities.
Mamdani&#8217;s 2027 budget, which he unveiled last week, includes $122 million for new teachers and $1.5 billion for classroom construction. That may seem like a sizable investment — but according to New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, this budget puts the city more than <a href="https://comptroller.nyc.gov/reports/letter-from-nyc-comptroller-lander-re-2025-class-size-plan-certification/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$13.01 billion</a> behind its goal to keep class sizes small.
If Mamdani wanted to find the money, he could re-evaluate the billions of dollars the city spends on its <a href="https://www.cityandstateny.com/policy/2024/12/following-asylum-seeker-odyssey/382850/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">migrant population</a>. New York City spent $1.41 billion for asylum seeker cash, rent, and food assistance and services 2023, $3.70 billion in 2024, and <a href="https://comptroller.nyc.gov/services/for-the-public/accounting-for-asylum-seeker-services/fiscal-impacts/">$3.02</a> billion in 2025. New York&#8217;s sanctuary city status proved so costly that Mamdani&#8217;s predecessor, Mayor Eric Adams, warned the Biden administration that unless it got the southern border under control, New York would have to cut back on social services for migrants.
Mamdani, who signed an executive order reaffirming New York&#8217;s sanctuary city status shortly after taking office, plans to pursue “a new path of defiance through compassion&#8221; where New York cares for everyone regardless of whether they pay taxes or not.
During his budget unveiling, Mamdani said he “refuses to kick structural challenges down the road for someone else to solve later.” For that reason, Mamdani has declared an &#8220;extension&#8221; for the class size plan — an extension that does not appear to have an end date. In the meantime, Mamdani is framing his refusal to deliver on the education improvement plan he himself voted for as a good thing for students.
“Our administration believes deeply in the state law capping class sizes and I am proud to have voted for this mandate during my time in the state assembly,&#8221; he said. &#8220;This extension will generate approximately $500 million in savings in the upcoming fiscal year, but more importantly it will allow us to implement an achievable plan that better serves our students and our teachers.&#8221;
New York City Council Member Vickie Palladino disagrees.
&#8220;Smaller class sizes mean more classrooms and more teachers, which he doesn&#8217;t have the money to do,&#8221; Palladino told The Daily Wire. Mamdani is &#8220;operating a budget by bailout,&#8221; she added, &#8220;hoping that down in the road, in 2028, he&#8217;ll get a Democratic president to give us a $10 billion, $20 billion, or maybe more. But by that time, the middle class will be gone.&#8221;
New York public schools are already suffering. The State Education Department&#8217;s annual report shows that only <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/12/05/us-news/nearly-half-of-students-across-ny-state-fail-to-make-the-grade-on-math-english-tests-data/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">22%</a> of fourth graders were proficient in reading and only 29% in math.
A report from the comptroller&#8217;s office also showed that bullying and drug-related incidents have increased this year. New York also <a href="https://www.news10.com/capitol/comptroller-drugs-and-bullying-up-but-serious-violence-near-zero/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">changed</a> how it collects data, now only reporting assaults or possession of weapons if the school refers the student to the police, the act would count as a felony, and the offender is at least ten years old.
The extension isn&#8217;t Mamdani&#8217;s only proposed public education shakeup. The mayor is planning to phase out New York City&#8217;s gifted student program over concerns that some children might be receiving a better education than others.
&#8220;I will return to the previous policy,&#8221; Mamdani <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/nyregion/mamdani-schools-gifted-and-talented-program.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said,</a> referencing former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to end the gifted program. &#8220;Ultimately, my administration would aim to make sure that every child receives a high-quality early education that nurtures their curiosity and learning.”

TOPSHOT-US-MAMDANI-FISCAL-BUDGET

Mamdani Says He Can’t Pay For School Improvements, But Spends Billions On Migrants

Education

New York City

Zohran Mamdani

The Trump administration is suing the sanctuary state of New Jersey over its recent law banning federal agents from wearing masks.
Democratic New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the “Law Enforcement Officer Protection Act&#8221; last month, barring federal agents, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, from wearing masks on the job. At the time, the sanctuary governor declared: &#8220;We’re not going to tolerate masked roving militias pretending, pretending to be well-trained law enforcement agents.&#8221;
Now, the Justice Department is taking legal action against the state, arguing that its unmasking law violates the federal government&#8217;s power granted by the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, according to the lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday. Additionally, the Trump administration asserted that the mask ban would put agents at risk at a time of heightened threats.
&#8220;The law creates a Hobson’s Choice for all federal officers: either put themselves at risk by unmasking and providing individual identification, at the cost of officer safety, the safety of their families, and operational effectiveness or face legal consequences by Defendants,&#8221; the lawsuit stated.
&#8220;Federal law enforcement officers have faced a significant increase in doxxing, harassment, and assaults, with antagonists and criminals filming and tracking officers using  individual identifiers such as their faces and badges. This conduct has led to violence and undermined law enforcement operations,&#8221; it added.
After Sherrill signed the unmasking law, masked ICE agents arrested a twice-deported illegal immigrant who faced domestic violence charges in 2024, <a href="https://www.app.com/story/news/local/2026/04/09/ice-mask-ban-ignored-during-jackon-nj-arrest/89532168007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Asbury Park Press.
At the time, ICE openly admitted that the agents were masked, making &#8220;crystal clear&#8221; that &#8220;we will not abide by this unconstitutional ban.&#8221;
“Sanctuary politicians attempting to ban our federal law enforcement from wearing masks is despicable and a flagrant attempt to endanger our officers,” an ICE spokesperson said.
Sherrill&#8217;s office responded, saying she was &#8220;prepared to take any necessary measures if ICE continues to violate the law,&#8221; &#8220;including taking the Trump Administration back to court.”
The Justice Department then sent the governor a letter &#8220;seeking assurances that the law was not enforceable against federal officers and no officials would  attempt to enforce it,&#8221; according to the lawsuit. Days later, New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport responded in an email &#8220;declaring that the law was constitutional and that federal officers were obligated to comply but refusing to opine on any enforcement actions.&#8221;
The Justice Department said they were &#8220;unsatisfied&#8221; and &#8220;sought clarity on whether New Jersey would enforce the law given the recent alleged violation,&#8221; according to the lawsuit. They also sent another court&#8217;s decision that struck down a similar law in California.
&#8220;To be clear, the Federal Government will not comply with this blatantly unconstitutional law. But the threat of enforcement by Defendants chills individual officers from protecting themselves and performing their duties. The consequences for public safety are severe,&#8221; the Department of Justice wrote in the lawsuit.

Untitled design – 2026-04-30T085656.219

Sanctuary State Tries To Place ICE Agents In Danger. Trump DOJ Says No Way.

Face Masks

Illegal Immigration

U.S.

Sanctuary authorities in Oregon cut an illegal immigrant truck driver loose after he allegedly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-immigrant-trucker-with-california-license-accused-of-killing-newlyweds-in-tragic-collision">killed a newlywed</a> couple in a tragic collision, leading federal officers to track him down, The Daily Wire has learned.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged a detainer with local authorities after Indian national Rajinder Kumar jackknifed his semi-truck and trailer in November. Kumar&#8217;s disabled big rig blocked both lanes of a major highway in Deschutes County, Oregon, allegedly causing the deaths of William Micah Carter and his wife, Jennifer Lynn Lower, after their vehicle “struck the trailer at highway speeds,&#8221; <a href="https://bendbulletin.com/2025/11/28/two-vehicle-crash-in-deschutes-county-kills-two/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to local reports.
The couple had only been married for 16 days at the time of the fatal collision, Jennifer’s father, Tom Lower, <a href="https://bendbulletin.com/2025/11/28/two-vehicle-crash-in-deschutes-county-kills-two/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Bulletin.
Despite facing local charges, along with having an ICE detainer, Kumar was released from a local jail on April 2, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). ICE was left to hunt him down in the streets, nabbing him on April 22.
It appears Kumar was released after posting $25,000, a portion of his $250,000 bond, before federal authorities caught up to him, <a href="https://lookouteugene-springfield.com/story/justice/2026/04/28/truck-driver-charged-in-death-of-springfield-couple-is-in-ice-custody/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to Lookout Eugene-Springfield.
<div id="attachment_1085745" style="width: 287px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1085745" class="size-medium wp-image-1085745" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Untitled-design-2026-04-28T130917.218-277x300.jpg" alt="" width="277" height="300" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Untitled-design-2026-04-28T130917.218-277x300.jpg 277w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/04/Untitled-design-2026-04-28T130917.218.jpg 465w" sizes=" (max-width: 277px) 100vw, 277px" />DHS</div>
Kumar crossed the border illegally into Lukeville, Arizona, in 2022 and was subsequently released into the country, according to DHS. He received a work permit in 2023, along with a California Commercial Driver&#8217;s License (CDL).
Acting Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis pinned the blame on Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom, along with sanctuary authorities in Oregon, for opening doors for Kumar throughout his time in the United States. The Trump administration has tagged California as a major source of fatal collisions involving illegal immigrant truck drivers after the state issued 17,000 non-domiciled Commercial Driver’s Licenses to foreign drivers.
“This illegal alien was issued a CDL by Gavin Newsom’s California. He then went on to recklessly drive a truck on America’s highways and KILL two honeymooners. Instead of cooperating with ICE law enforcement, Oregon sanctuary politicians RELEASED him from jail back into American communities,” Bis said in a statement shared with The Daily Wire.
“Every time sanctuary politicians release a dangerous criminal illegal alien back into our communities, they are gambling with American lives. We are grateful to our ICE law enforcement officers who tracked this killer down to ensure he’s permanently removed from America’s highways and can never harm another American family again,&#8221; Bis said.
Kumar is now locked up at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, where he will face deportation proceedings before an immigration judge. The illegal immigrant pleaded not guilty to manslaughter and reckless endangerment charges in March.

Untitled design – 2026-04-28T130816.447

EXCLUSIVE: ICE Hunts Down Illegal Trucker Accused Of Killing Newlyweds — Sanctuary City Let Him Go

Deportations

Oregon

Truckers

The Houston City Council voted Wednesday to walk back a policy that prevented local police from assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after the state of Texas threatened to pull more than $110 million in funds.
Texas Governor <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-texas-governor-greg-abbott-puts-blue-cities-on-notice-over-sanctuary-policies?author=Jennie+Taer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+Texas+Governor+Greg+Abbott+Puts+Blue+Cities+On+Notice+Over+Sanctuary+Policies">Greg Abbott</a> (R) accused the city of violating the terms of the public safety grants after the passage of an ordinance that prevented local police from holding individuals with immigration arrest warrants for 30 minutes while ICE arrives at a scene.
Houston Democratic Mayor John Whitmire revised the ordinance with the help of Abbott&#8217;s office after voting in favor of it, according to KHOU. The new version states that Houston police will comply with federal laws and can temporarily hold someone for as long as reasonably necessary.
The Houston City Council passed it in a 13-4 vote, KHOU <a href="https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/houston-city-council-approves-revised-immigration-policy-amid-funding-fight/285-feefb140-c43c-4143-afc7-90be1e14119a" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>.
A spokesperson for Abbott told The Daily Wire it’s “a step in the right direction after Houston leaders put public safety at risk with reckless policies that undermined law enforcement.”
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) sued the city of Houston over the original ordinance, arguing that “no Texas city will be a safe harbor for illegals.”
Paxton said Wednesday that the legal pressure forced Houston to take &#8220;action to reverse its sanctuary policy.&#8221;
&#8220;My office will continue to review the updated ordinance and ensure that the City of Houston fully complies with SB 4 and does not restrict law enforcement&#8217;s ability to assist ICE and enforce immigration law,&#8221; Paxton wrote on X Wednesday.
Houston originally passed the ordinance barring local police from assisting ICE on April 8. That led Abbott to threaten to pull the $110 million, arguing the original version of the ordinance resulted in a breach of contract over the grants.
The state requires that recipients of the public safety grants must work with ICE. If they refuse to assist ICE, “they forfeit the money” and must “repay to the state every single dollar they have received,” Abbott told The Daily Wire in a recent interview.
“As President Trump sometimes says, they have no cards,” Abbott said. “We have all the cards in this, and they are going to lose, and they’re not going to be able to balance their budget.”
Last week, Whitmire said the city was facing a &#8220;crisis situation,&#8221; adding that “the potential loss of state funding poses real challenges” for local authorities and for security at the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup.

US-IMMIGRATION-ICE-SHOOTING

Blue City Reverses Sanctuary Policy After State Threatens To Pull Millions In Funding

Greg Abbott

Houston

Texas

Sheridan Gorman&#8217;s father is decrying the sanctuary policies that resulted in his daughter&#8217;s alleged killer being out on the streets.
Venezuelan national <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-steps-in-after-illegal-immigrant-accused-of-slaying-college-freshman">Jose Medina</a>, 25, allegedly gunned down the 18-year-old Loyola University freshman in Chicago last month. At the time, Gorman was walking with her friends around 1 a.m. to look for the northern lights near the Chicago lakefront.
Before that, Medina had crossed the border illegally in May of 2023 and was subsequently released into the country.
He was caught allegedly shoplifting from a Chicago Macy&#8217;s that June, according to the Chicago Tribune. When the illegal immigrant failed to appear for his hearing in the case, a warrant was sworn out for his arrest.
Sheridan&#8217;s father is now arguing that local authorities should have handed Medina over to federal authorities at the time due to his lack of immigration status.
&#8220;There needs to be some cooperation between state and local government and federal officials. When someone commits a crime and they&#8217;ve been here illegally, there needs to be cooperation,&#8221; Sheridan&#8217;s father, Thomas Gorman, told CBS News in an interview that aired Wednesday.
&#8220;He was arrested for, yes, a nonviolent crime, but he was also here illegally. In our mind, he should&#8217;ve been handed over to the feds at that point,&#8221; the grieving father added.
Sheridan&#8217;s mother said they were told their daughter likely saved her friends&#8217; lives the night of her murder.
&#8220;He, like, moved towards her threateningly,&#8221; Jessica Gorman, Sheridan&#8217;s mother, told CBS News of Medina&#8217;s actions that night. &#8220;She turned around and she warned her friends that there was a man with a gun, and you need to run. And they ran.&#8221;
Sheridan was able to run about 40 feet before she was shot in the back and neck, Thomas said.
&#8220;They say it was a senseless tragedy. It wasn&#8217;t. It was a murder. It was a preventable murder,&#8221; Jessica said.
Medina was charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder in the first degree, three counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm, and one count of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged a detainer with local authorities, but it is not likely to force any action due to sanctuary laws in Illinois.
Before he was released into the country after crossing the border, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/biden-era-illegal-dubbed-likely-to-flee-now-accused-in-college-student-murder">Border Patrol agents</a> said that Medina was &#8220;likely to abscond,&#8221; according to federal documents that were recently obtained by House Judiciary Committee Republicans.
The agents also noted that Medina didn’t make any asylum claims, writing that he did not “fear harm or persecution” if returned to Venezuela.
Meanwhile, Medina&#8217;s defense has argued that the Venezuelan national is developmentally delayed and can&#8217;t read or write after being shot in the head during a 2018 robbery in Colombia, <a href="https://wgntv.com/news/wgn-investigates/what-we-know-about-loyola-murder-suspect-jose-medina/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to WGN.

Untitled design – 2026-04-22T090118.114

Parents Of Slain Student Say Her Murder Was ‘Preventable,’ Sanctuary Policies Released Her Killer

Chicago

illegal immigrant

Illinois

Another illegal immigrant is accused of a violent crime in the sanctuary state of Virginia.
This time, a Guatemalan illegal immigrant, Luzvin Orvando Garcia Moran, 28, allegedly approached a woman while she was waiting for her rideshare Sunday morning in Arlington before trying to rape her, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/04/15/ice-asks-governor-spanberger-and-virginia-sanctuary-politicians-arlington-county" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Thursday. When she initially tried to walk away, Moran allegedly followed the victim before grabbing her and shoving her into a wall, <a href="https://wjla.com/news/local/man-accused-of-attempted-rape-after-woman-attacked-in-arlington" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to ABC7.
Moran then allegedly assaulted the woman before she was able to break free, according to the report. The illegal immigrant then caught up to her and continued to attack.
Good samaritans helped the woman and called the police, according to ABC7. Moran allegedly tried to run, but was eventually nabbed by authorities.
At the time of the attack, Moran had at least 25 prior charges dating back to 2020 that included nine counts of being intoxicated in public, assault and battery, disorderly conduct, attempting to disarm a law enforcement officer, and several probation violations, DHS said.
He also initially snuck into the country as a gotaway, meaning he ran past border authorities without getting caught, according to DHS.
Now, the Trump administration is calling on Democratic Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger and other sanctuary politicians in the state to not release Moran.
Spanberger, however, has signaled that ICE detainers aren&#8217;t enough for local authorities to cooperate and that federal immigration agents would need a warrant signed by a judge in such cases. Upon taking office, she ended an agreement allowing state and local law enforcement to cooperate with ICE.
Since then, the state has seen a string of crimes perpetrated by illegal immigrants.
Last week, an<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/illegal-alien-teen-convicted-of-groping-girls-as-school-response-triggers-trump-admin-probe"> illegal immigrant from El Salvador</a> was found guilty of groping multiple girls at a high school he attended in Fairfax County.
Authorities in Fairfax County have also seen three murders tied to illegal immigrant offenders in recent months.
“Virginia&#8217;s sanctuary policies allowed this illegal alien to go on a crime spree,” Acting Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said of the latest case. “Despite prior arrests by law enforcement, this criminal was released from jail multiple times before he went on to commit this attempted heinous rape.&#8221;
&#8220;We are calling on Arlington County sanctuary politicians and Governor Abigail Spanberger to commit to not releasing this criminal from jail back into our communities,&#8221; Bis said. &#8220;How many more times must they release criminals into our neighborhoods to create more innocent victims?”
Moran was charged with attempted rape, abduction with intent to defile, and assault and battery, according to ABC7. He is being held without bond.

Untitled design – 2026-04-16T123056.565

Another Violent Attack Tied To Sanctuary Policies, Dem Gov Who Won’t Work With ICE

abigail spanberger

Crime

Virginia

The Trump administration is considering a new plan to pressure sanctuary cities to change their ways.
In his first interview since his confirmation, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said Monday that he&#8217;s weighing pulling Customs officers from major airports in sanctuary cities to force them to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. The move would effectively prevent international travel through those airports.
&#8220;I believe sanctuary cities is not lawful,&#8221; Mullin told Fox News&#8217; Bret Baier. &#8220;I don&#8217;t think they&#8217;re able to do that, and so we&#8217;re gonna take a hard look at this.&#8221;
He pointed specifically to international airports as a potential pressure point.
&#8220;If they&#8217;re sanctuary cities, should they really be processing Customs into their city?&#8221; Mullin asked. &#8220;If they&#8217;re a sanctuary city and they&#8217;re receiving international flights, and we&#8217;re asking them to partner with us at the airport, but once they walk out of the airport they&#8217;re not gonna enforce immigration policy, maybe we need to have a really hard look at that because we need to focus on cities that want to work with us.&#8221;
President Donald Trump&#8217;s immigration enforcement effort has targeted some sanctuary cities by flooding them with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and Border Patrol agents. One such operation took place in Chicago last year, where local authorities were restricted from working with ICE.
Mullin suggested the potential policy change comes alongside broader resource constraints and political battles in Washington, including a partial government shutdown over Democrats&#8217; demands to dramatically reform ICE.
&#8220;We&#8217;re gonna have to start prioritizing things at some point,&#8221; Mullin said.
&#8220;Right now, a number of the Democrats are wanting to defund Customs and Border Patrol. Well, who processes those individuals when they walk off a plane? And so I&#8217;m gonna have to be forced to make hard decisions,&#8221; he added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Mullin: I believe sanctuary cities is not lawful. Some of these cities have international airports. If they are a sanctuary city, should they really be processing customs into their city? We need to have a really hard look at that.
Baier: So you are saying that big cities that… <a href="https://t.co/UAJxWFZtZI">pic.twitter.com/UAJxWFZtZI</a>
— Acyn (@Acyn) <a href="https://twitter.com/Acyn/status/2041279294325071987?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
During his confirmation hearing last month, Mullin offered a willingness to implement &#8220;a better approach&#8221; for ICE, saying he “would love to see&#8221; the agency &#8220;become a transport more than the frontline.”
“If we can get back into just simply working with law enforcement, we’re going to them and we’re picking up these criminals from their jail. One, we’re gonna reimburse them for having the person there, and that partnership is vitally important,” he said.

Sanctuary_cities_airports

Sanctuary Cities Warned To Put Americans First Or Lose Critical Airport Lifeline

How many tragic deaths, like that of 18-year-old Sheridan Gorman, are we willing to tolerate before enough is enough? How does this keep happening? 
 
Gorman, a freshman at Loyola University Chicago, was fatally shot on March 19th while walking with friends near the school&#8217;s Lake Shore campus by an illegal alien criminal from Venezuela. The group was walking to see the northern lights when a masked gunman emerged from the shadows and opened fire. 
 
The suspect, Jose Medina-Medina, a 25-year-old Venezuelan national, has been charged with first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder.
Why does such a heinous tragedy happen?
The Department of Homeland Security put it bluntly: Sheridan Gorman &#8220;was failed by open border policies and sanctuary politicians who released this illegal alien twice before he went on to commit this heinous murder.&#8221;
While most cities and states are working to undo the disastrous policies of the Biden administration that allowed tens of millions of illegal aliens into the country, certain blue cities are vehemently resisting anything the Trump administration does. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson are spearheading this &#8220;resistance&#8221; — and actively making life not only worse for their constituents, but dangerous. 
 
Here are a few of the ways Chicago created the perfect storm that ultimately led to Gorman&#8217;s death.
On a municipal level, Johnson and his cadre of progressives enacted the Welcoming City Ordinance — Chicago&#8217;s primary sanctuary law, which was expanded in 2021 to remove previous &#8220;carve-outs&#8221; that had allowed police to cooperate with ICE in cases involving individuals with felony convictions or those in the gang database. Essentially, police are barred from assisting ICE during operations, ICE agents aren&#8217;t permitted in local jails, and officers are prohibited from asking about a person&#8217;s immigration status during routine interactions.
To make matters worse for citizens — and better for criminals — Mayor Johnson issued an order preventing ICE from using city-owned parking lots, garages, or any other city property for enforcement work.
On a state level, the TRUST Act prohibits state and local law enforcement from detaining any individual based on a federal immigration detainer or administrative warrant. In other words, it&#8217;s nearly impossible for ICE to do their job. 
 
Then there’s the Illinois Way Forward Act (2021), which significantly expanded the TRUST Act by prohibiting state and local government from contracting the federal government to house or detain illegal immigrants, banning local police from transferring individuals into ICE custody without a judicial warrant, and restricting the flow of information to ICE officers about individuals in local custody.
And of course, they signed the Keep Illinois Families Together Act, which restricts ICE from entering schools, health centers, libraries, courthouses, polling locations (strange, considering the leftist claim that noncitizens aren&#8217;t voting), and more.
Those are policies carved out specifically for illegal aliens. But to understand exactly how a criminal, an illegal Venezuelan national, ended up murdering a young American girl, you only need to look at Medina&#8217;s timeline. 
 
Medina entered the U.S. illegally in May of 2023 under Biden. He was apprehended and released into the interior of the country without asylum claims. Just one month later, he was arrested in Chicago for shoplifting — and released from local custody shortly after, because of the very policies listed above. 
 
In September of that same year, he failed to appear for his court date. A warrant was issued but never served. He claims he missed the hearing due to a hospital stay — which means he was receiving free healthcare as an illegal criminal. 
 
And then, not even three years later, he murdered Sheridan Gorman in cold blood. 
 
Medina was a symptom, not an anomaly. Since January 20, 2025 alone, Governor Pritzker&#8217;s sanctuary state of Illinois has released 1,768 criminal illegal aliens with active ICE detainers — including individuals charged or convicted of murder, sexual offenses, and weapons crimes. Another 4,015 criminal non-citizens remain in Illinois custody with detainers that local officials refuse to — or aren&#8217;t allowed to — honor.
If you’re wondering how in the heck this could continue to go on? It will — because these Democrat leaders are tone deaf and are willing to trade their constituents&#8217; and our fellow citizens&#8217; safety for the comfort and protection of criminal illegal aliens. Even after Sheridan’s blood was spilled, Mayor Brandon Johnson doubled down. Just days after the murder, he proudly unveiled a new city snowplow named ‘Abolish ICE’ — while the city was still mourning an 18-year-old Loyola freshman gunned down by a man his policies had shielded.
Don&#8217;t let them tell you that sanctuary city policies aren&#8217;t dangerous or destructive. Because again and again, we&#8217;re being reminded — they are.

People Protest in Chicago, IL as Part of the No Kings Rallies on October 18, 2025

Chicago’s Sanctuary Policies Allowed A Girl To Be Murdered In Cold Blood.

illegal alien

Republican Senator Rick Scott is set to introduce legislation that would spell major financial losses for sanctuary cities and states, The Daily Wire has learned.
The Florida senator introduced the bill — dubbed the Unifying American Security Interests Act — to explicitly tie eligibility for federal grants to cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In order to secure the federal funds, cities would need to honor ICE detainers, conduct joint training with immigration officers, and commit to openly sharing information with federal authorities.
Along with the aforementioned bill, Scott introduced the Sanctuary Jurisdiction Event Security Enhancement Act, which bars sanctuary cities and states from receiving federal funding for event security through the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Special Event Assessment Rating.
“Democrat politicians are putting illegal aliens first and the American people last, harboring criminals in sanctuary cities where they refuse to enforce our laws,&#8221; Scott said in a statement shared with The Daily Wire.
&#8220;President Trump is doing his part by securing the border, now Congress must pass my bills to hold sanctuary cities and states accountable by withholding federal tax dollars until they cooperate with federal law enforcement,&#8221; Scott said.
President Donald Trump has previously threatened to cut federal funding to sanctuary jurisdictions amid his mass deportation crackdown.
Trump accused sanctuary cities and states of doing &#8220;everything possible to protect criminals at the expense of American citizens,&#8221; adding that &#8220;it breeds fraud and crime and all of the other problems that come,&#8221; <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-immigration-funds-sanctuary-cities-states-february-rcna253986" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to NBC News.
The state of Virginia and its new Democratic Governor Abigail Spanberger have drawn the ire of the Trump administration over recent crimes carried out by illegal immigrant offenders.
In the latest example, the Department of Homeland Security is begging local authorities in Fairfax County not to release an illegal immigrant accused of groping at least a dozen female students while he attended a local high school with them as an adult.
“This 19-year-old criminal illegal alien should NOT have been attending a Virginia high school and allowed to prey on innocent teenage girls. He now faces nine counts of assault and battery. This is yet another example of the Biden Administration’s failed open border policies,” Homeland Security Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement Monday regarding the case.
“We are calling on Fairfax County sanctuary politicians to NOT release this predator from jail back into our communities to assault more teenage women. Unfortunately, Governor Abigail Spanberger ended cooperation with ICE and is siding with criminal illegal aliens over American citizens.”
The Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office told The Daily Wire that they don’t “obstruct or prevent ICE from acting on their civil detainers,” but didn’t say whether they’d notify federal immigration officers ahead of the suspect&#8217;s eventual release.
“While it is still too early in the process to know the outcome of his case, ICE has been notified of Ortiz’s location at the ADC [Adult Detention Center], and they are able to execute their detainer by responding to the ADC and taking Ortiz into custody if and when he is ordered released,” the sheriff’s office said.

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