Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd held a press conference on Wednesday to push back against what he called inaccurate media coverage of his comments and those of the Florida State Immigration Enforcement Council regarding mass deportations of illegal immigrants.
Sheriff Judd, who serves as chairman of the council, directly addressed headlines claiming that Florida sheriffs were rebelling against President Donald Trump’s and Governor Ron DeSantis’ mass deportation efforts. “Not true,” he stated firmly. “We in fact support the mass deportation of illegal aliens — those that are criminals, those that have warrants of deportation, those that are here creating havoc and problems.”
He added: “If you’re here illegally and you take that risk to be here illegally, then you’re going to be deported. Everyone that ICE says deport, we deport.”
Judd clarified that the council’s quarterly meeting on Monday was not a closed-door session, contrary to some reports. It was a public meeting that had been announced to the media, with members of the press present.
The sheriff emphasized that Florida law enforcement fully supports and cooperates with ICE, describing the agency as “excellent to work with.” He noted that issues in other states stemmed from those states’ refusal to allow ICE agents into jails to identify individuals here illegally who had committed crimes or had existing deportation warrants.
Judd explained that the council — composed of four sheriffs and four chiefs of police — acts as a think tank and subject matter experts. Its role is to provide on-the-ground input, research, and feedback to the state immigration enforcement board, which includes the governor and cabinet members. It does not make decisions or direct policy.
He dispelled any notion of a split with Governor Ron DeSantis, calling him “the best governor we’ve had” and a friend, while stressing that providing honest feedback from the field is not disloyalty. “Florida’s crime is at an all-time low,” Judd said. “It’s the safe state of Florida as well as the free state of Florida.”
Turning to specifics from the meeting, Judd shared statistics from his own agency: 76% of immigration detainers placed were based on accompanying criminal charges, while 24% were “collaterals” — cases where individuals were encountered during other enforcement actions and found to be here illegally, often after associating with those committing crimes.
He pointed out that the United States treats first-time illegal entry as a civil violation rather than a criminal one, and that his agency’s practices have remained consistent across the Biden, previous Trump, and Obama administrations.
Judd stressed that the conversation at the meeting focused on practical realities and a “common sense approach.” With an estimated 10 to 18 million illegal aliens in the country and approximately 1.5 million existing deportation warrants, he argued that Congress bears responsibility for comprehensive immigration reform.
The council discussed the need for a “path forward” for individuals who entered the country illegally (a civil violation) but are otherwise contributing positively: they have no criminal history, are employed, not on government assistance, not creating problems, have children in school, and demonstrate positive community integration — including learning to speak English.
Judd illustrated this with an example of a woman in her 40s brought here illegally as a teenager by her parents. She is married to an American citizen, works, has no criminal record, and contributes to society. “That’s not the problem person,” he said. “There’s millions of problem people we need to be dealing with.”
He proposed a structured system requiring accountability, such as paying a fine, waiving further due process, meeting criteria over five years (English proficiency, no government handouts, employment, children’s education, and community integration), and focusing enforcement resources on criminals, those with deportation warrants, and individuals causing harm.
“All of those in attendance” at the meeting — with one member absent — supported finding such a path for those “doing good” while violating civil immigration law, Judd said. He noted receiving positive feedback from other sheriffs and community members calling it “common sense.”
Judd made clear this was not “amnesty” but a practical priority-setting measure, given the scale of the issue. “We can’t get 18 million people out of this country anyway,” he said, advocating a thoughtful approach that targets those who are “a drag on our society” or dangerous first. “There’s two lifetimes worth of work for law enforcement to deal with them.”
He criticized Congress for failing to act, comparing the situation to an “elephant size cancer” and giving lawmakers an “F minus” for their inaction amid partisan battles. “If Congress will do their job… then it frees us up to focus on those that are committing crime, those that are dangerous, those that are violent.”
Judd reiterated strong support for President Trump’s priority of deporting the “worst first” — criminals and those with warrants — and praised the sealing of the border. He also defended ICE against criticism, noting full cooperation in Florida.
The sheriff mentioned prior discussions of these ideas, including in a meeting with an immigration policy think tank and with Univision, as well as conversations with U.S. Senator Rick Scott and Congressman Scott Franklin. He has not yet heard directly from the Trump administration or the governor’s office in response to the recent meeting but expressed appreciation for DeSantis’ leadership in forming the council.
Judd concluded that the council’s input aims to “calm the waters” and offer better ways to handle immigration enforcement while keeping Florida safe, emphasizing that any suggestion of opposition to the president or governor is “offensive.” Their role, he said, is simply to provide data and ideas from those “eyeball to eyeball” with the issues on the ground.
