The Maricopa County Sheriff has vowed to stand by ICE ahead of an anticipated increase to immigration enforcement in the Valley.
In a video statement published to social media over the weekend, Maricopa County Sheriff Jerry Sheridan said he would protect federal agents as they carried out their duties.
“When ICE is here doing their job of their responsibility, I will be here to protect them to do that and keep people from interfering with them. Anyone will be arrested if they interfere with federal officers doing their duty, and I want to make that very clear,” said Sheridan. “Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office does work with ICE and cooperates with ICE. In fact, we have two ICE agents in our intake facility. So, there should be no question that your sheriff, the constitutional sheriff, will enforce the law when necessary and will not tolerate any violations of the law.”
Clarification on my relationship with ICE apparently is needed after an interview on KTAR radio last Wednesday.
During that interview, I was asked a very straightforward question about if ICE broke the law what would I do about it. I gave a very short & straightforward answer… pic.twitter.com/E6PtBOF9cw— Sheriff Jerry Sheridan (@JerrySheridan24) January 17, 2026
Sheridan released these remarks as clarification to an interview from last week which characterized him as planning to police ICE agents. The sheriff said that the same laws which apply to civilians also apply to law enforcement.
“If they’re doing something that is illegal, unlawful, the sheriff will be there [to arrest them],” said Sheridan in an interview with KTAR last week.
The sheriff’s remarks were perceived initially as doubts to ICE agents’ ability to carry out lawful orders. Sheridan says that’s not the case.
In a separate interview with Fox News, Sheridan said that although he has the authority as the top law enforcement officer of the county to arrest ICE agents, he trusts federal immigration enforcement.
“I have to trust my federal partners that they’re going to do the right thing,” said Sheridan.
Sheridan also told the outlet that he considered the shooting of Renee Good in Minnesota to be “a lawful shoot” pending the release of further information. An ICE agent shot Good when she drove her vehicle into him. Good was present to interfere with immigration enforcement activities.
The ICE agent shooting of Good appeared consistent with actions taken by non-federal law enforcement officers elsewhere.
Such was the case for another national incident similar to Good’s that played out in Ohio. In 2023, an officer standing in front of a vehicle shot a female shoplifting suspect who began to drive forward after refusing to comply with another officer’s orders to exit the vehicle.
The officer who shot the driver was charged with murder, felonious assault, and involuntary manslaughter. After years in court, that officer was acquitted of all charges in November. He was also cleared of wrongdoing by his department’s force review board earlier this month.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foLLQ4ipY7E
In addition to the county sheriff, ICE also has the support of the congressional officials representing the county.
Rep. Abe Hamadeh has a sign on the window of his district office expressing his allegiance to immigration enforcement agents — a sign of support as well as encouragement for his voters to support ICE.
“STAND WITH ICE,” reads the sign.
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