USAupdated 12m ago2 min read
Archive photo · 19 May 2022Houston Mayor John Whitmire Orders HPD To Limit ICE Cooperation After Midterm Results
“‘I do this to begin a healing process,’ Whitmire said on Friday, and to ‘reduce fear and anxiety across our community’.”
“Following Democrats’ generational victory in the 2026 midterms, the combined threat, taunt, and promise is already being wielded with gusto.”
Photo: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Houston Police Department will limit contact with ICE to arrests with immigration warrants. The directive was announced after Democrats won Texas midterms, signed by Mayor John Whitmire.
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Houston curbs ICE contact
Houston Mayor John Whitmire ordered the Houston Police Department to limit cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, reversing the city’s previous approach.
Whitmire directed officers to contact ICE only when someone arrested for a custodial offence also has an administrative immigration warrant, and he said, "I do this to begin a healing process," while adding that he wanted to "reduce fear and anxiety across our community".
Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz said officers would now only contact ICE if the person they arrest for a jailable offence also has an administrative ICE warrant, and he contrasted the new approach with minor traffic stops where officers issue a citation and the person "goes about their day".
The policy change came after Democrats’ victories in Texas during the week’s midterm elections, and it broke with the approach set by Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who lost his re-election bid.
How the rule changes
Houston’s executive order, signed by Whitmire on Friday, changed how officers respond when they encounter an immigration administrative order in background checks.
The directive said officers should not contact ICE during routine encounters that do not end in an arrest, and it specified that officers will contact ICE when they arrest a person for a charge that could lead to imprisonment and who also has an immigration administrative order.
The BBC said the previous rules required Houston police officers to inform ICE if a person they were dealing with appeared in the National Crime Information Center database with one of these warrants when searched.
The BBC also said Whitmire told reporters, "ICE needs better training. They need body cameras. They need to be trained in de-escalation."
Political and legal fallout
The BBC reported that a DHS spokesperson told Houston’s NBC affiliate, KPRC 2, that the department was disappointed by what it called a "sanctuary politicians" stance and said law enforcement was "simply fulfilling their sworn duties to serve and protect our communities." The BBC also said Abbott had threatened to take pull millions in funds from cities like Houston, Dallas and Austin unless they allowed police to cooperate fully with federal immigration officials.
Clarin said ICE responded to Whitmire’s announcement by arguing that the mayor was "directly advocating for policies that protect some of the worst criminals in the United States," and it cited the claim that viewing child pornography and selling heroin are classified as non-violent crimes. The policy shift also followed a dispute in Houston that had involved a threatened withdrawal of $110 million in public safety subsidies, and it came as Gina Hinojosa was set to take office as governor in January 2027.
