July 13, 2021

Dear Members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee,

President Joe Biden has nominated Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of Harris County, TX to serve as the Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). A co-chair of the Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force (LEITF), Sheriff Gonzalez is a proven leader on issues at the intersection of law enforcement and immigration. As his peers and fellow LEITF members, we believe he will prioritize both public safety and the dignity of immigrants as the Director of ICE.

Sheriff Gonzalez was elected Sheriff of Harris County – Texas’ largest county and the United States’ third largest county by population – in November 2016. Prior to this, Sheriff Gonzalez served for 18 years in the Houston Police Department and six years on Houston’s City Council, chairing the Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee. We believe these diverse experiences will inform Sheriff Gonzalez’s leadership at ICE, and ensure that public safety, community trust, collaboration with local and state law enforcement, and humane treatment of immigrants are prioritized by ICE under the Biden administration.

As a law enforcement leader, Sheriff Gonzalez has supported smarter, targeted enforcement priorities that respect local law enforcement and uphold community trust. For example, he worked with other Texas sheriffs to raise concerns about state legislation (SB.4) that would require local law enforcement to divert scarce resources to carry out certain immigration enforcement activities that traditionally have been the responsibility of the federal government.

In addition to championing smarter enforcement priorities, Sheriff Gonzalez has been an outspoken advocate for compassionate treatment of immigrants as an LEITF member. He joined a group of Texas law enforcement leaders in denouncing President Trump’s family separation policy. He is also an advocate for Dreamers and has urged Congress to find bipartisan solutions to protect DACA recipients and provide pathways to citizenship. In a May 2018 press statement, he stated:

Congress owes all Americans a bipartisan, permanent solution for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). A solution for Dreamers is also a solution for American workers, businesses, law enforcement, churches, our military, and entire communities. Dreamers are our neighbors, our co-workers, our friends. It is past time for our Congress to rise above the political rhetoric and demonstrate true leadership on this urgent issue.

We believe Sheriff Gonzalez would lead ICE with acute knowledge of local law enforcement realities and compassion for vulnerable immigrants. Confirming Sheriff Gonzalez will ensure that ICE prioritizes enforcement against those who pose public safety or national security threats, and that local law enforcement agencies can focus their limited resources on community safety.

We believe Sheriff Gonzalez’s pragmatic and sensible leadership would be an asset to ICE. We support Sheriff Gonzalez’s nomination and urge that he be confirmed promptly.

Sincerely,

Sheriff Margaret Mims, LEITF Co-Chair

Fresno County, CA

Chief Orlando Rolón, LEITF Co-Chair Orlando, FL

Chief Art Acevedo, LEITF Co-Chair
Miami, FL

Executive Director Dwayne Crawford National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE)

Former National President Clarence Cox

National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE)

Chief Ernest Finley

Montgomery, AL

Lieutenant Andy Norris, Retired
Tuscaloosa, AL

Chief Ramon Batista, Retired

Mesa, AZ

Chief Roy Bermudez

Nogales, AZ

Chief Jack Harris, Retired

Phoenix, AZ

Chief Mike Soelberg

Gilbert, AZ

Chief Steve Stahl, Retired

Maricopa, AZ

Chief Roberto Villasenor, Retired

Tucson AZ

Chief Bill Scott

San Francisco, CA

Chief David Valentin

Santa Ana, CA

Chief Robert Contee

Washington, DC

Interim Chief Sylvia Moir

Napa, CA

Sheriff John Mina

Orange County, FL

Chief Roy W. Minter Jr.

Savannah, GA

Chief Chris Cole

Storm Lake, IA

Sheriff Paul Fitzgerald

Story County, IA

Chief Wayne Jerman

Cedar Rapids, IA

Director of Public Safety Mark Prosser, Retired

Storm Lake, IA

Sheriff Kevin Schneider

Polk County, IA

Chief Mike Tupper

Marshalltown, IA

Chief Craig Kingsbury

Twin Falls, ID

Sheriff John Idleburg

Lake County, IL

Chief Michael Diekhoff

Bloomington, IN

Chief Scott Ruszkowski

South Bend, IN

Chief Ron Teachman, Retired

South Bend, IN

Chief Gordon Ramsay

Wichita, KS

Chief Erika Shields

Louisville, KY

Sheriff Peter Koutoujian

Middlesex County, MA

Chief Brian Kyes

Chelsea, MA

Chief Marcus Jones

Montgomery County, MD

Chief J. Thomas Manger, Retired

Montgomery County, MD

Sheriff Jerry Clayton

Washtenaw County, MI

Chief Ron Haddad

Dearborn, MI

Chief Christopher C. Blue

Chapel Hill, NC

Sheriff Garry McFadden

Mecklenburg County, NC

Sheriff Eli Rivera

Cheshire County, NH

Chief Richard Biehl

Dayton, OH

Public Safety Commissioner Steven Pare

Providence, RI

Chief William Holbrook

Columbia, SC

Sheriff Leon Lott

Richland County, SC

Chief Fred Fletcher, Retired
Chattanooga, TN

Sheriff Marian Brown

Dallas County, TX

Chief Frank Dixon

Denton, TX

Sheriff J.E. “Eddie” Guerra

Hidalgo County, TX

Chief Andy Harvey

Pharr, TX

Sheriff Sally Hernandez

Travis County, TX

Chief Mike Markle

Corpus Christi, TX

Chief Neil Noakes

Fort Worth, TX

Chief Claudio Treviño, Jr.

Laredo, TX

Sheriff Lupe Valdez, Retired

Dallas County, TX

Chief Mike Brown

Salt Lake City, UT

Retired Chief/FBI National Executive

Institute Associates President Chris Burbank

Salt Lake City, UT

Captain Sean Casey

Alexandria, VA

Chief Peter Newsham

Prince William County, VA

Sheriff Mitzi Johanknecht

King County, WA

Sheriff David J. Mahoney, Retired

Dane County, WI

*Signatures updated as of July 13, at 12 pm ET*

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