For years, former acting ICE Director Tom Homan has argued that sanctuary cities are not just flawed policies—they’re a threat to public safety. Now, he’s suggesting that real accountability may soon follow. In a Tuesday interview, Homan was asked whether officials in sanctuary cities should face jail time under federal law for protecting illegal immigrants from deportation. His response was short but clear: a warning.
“Absolutely,” Homan replied. “And hold tight on that one. Because it’s coming. It’s coming.” That stark warning comes as Homan, now serving as President Donald Trump’s border czar, intensifies his efforts to urge the Department of Justice to hold local officials accountable for defying federal immigration laws. “Sanctuary cities can sit by and watch their communities get ravaged by illegal aliens. They can watch young women get raped and murdered,” Homan said in the same interview. “The Trump administration is not going to stand for that.”
Under current U.S. law—specifically 8 U.S.C. § 1324—it is a federal offense to “conceal, harbor, or shield from detection” any illegal alien. Critics of sanctuary city policies argue that limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities directly violates this statute. Homan has consistently maintained that local officials—mayors, county supervisors, and city councilmembers—who enact such policies should not be exempt from legal consequences. His latest remarks signal a significant escalation in the legal and political fight over sanctuary jurisdictions.
While the Trump administration previously targeted these jurisdictions through funding restrictions and legal action, Homan’s remarks suggest that a much stronger approach may be underway — specifically, the criminal prosecution of the involved officials. “I mean, what we’re doing is when you secure the border, not only are you going to stop the bad element coming across, you’re saving lives,” Homan told Fox News. “Like, right now we’ve got 95 percent, the numbers are down 95 percent, right? So, you know, many organizations, nonpartisan organizations, have done studies saying, you know, 31 percent of women make that journey to use cartels get sexually assaulted.”
“So you look at, when 95 percent less people are coming, like right now, how many women aren’t being raped by the cartels? How many children aren’t dying, you know, making that journey? How many women and children aren’t sex trafficked across the border? How many pounds of fentanyl is not getting through a secured border?” he asked. “How many billions of dollars a cartel is not making? How many people on terrorist watchlist aren’t crossing the border? So secure border saves lives. So, President Trump’s policies and executive actions are bold actions that are saving thousands of lives every week.”