Immigration enforcement is ramping up in Davidson County, Tennessee, where local authorities are increasingly transferring a surge in detainees to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—even though the county no longer participates in a formal ICE partnership.
In March alone, 56 individuals were handed over to ICE by the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office—the highest monthly number in more than a year. From January to March 2025, 126 transfers have taken place, amounting to nearly half of all transfers for the entire previous year.
This rise in enforcement comes as Tennessee enacts a law requiring jails to comply with ICE detainer requests, granting federal agents 48 hours to assume custody of detainees flagged for immigration violations. This law ensures that local facilities do not act as “sanctuary” locations for those potentially in the country illegally—especially individuals who have already faced criminal charges.
Some activists and progressive council members have objected to specific ICE transfers. Council Member Ginny Welsch expressed outrage after a pregnant woman in her district, arrested on domestic violence charges (later dismissed), was taken into ICE custody. “It’s very distressing,” Welsch said, claiming the woman was suffering “internal bleeding and cramping” and that her family hasn’t heard from her.
The woman’s attorney, Jordan Sluder, echoed Welsch’s emotional appeals, stating: “Yosmeni is being treated as livestock rather than a pregnant woman under current ICE enforcement policy.”
Critics have launched a GoFundMe for the woman and her children, which has raised over $2,000. But others maintain that the sheriff’s office is simply following the law. State leaders argue that local jails should not obstruct immigration enforcement when criminal activity is involved.
This surge in ICE cooperation is part of a broader trend in Tennessee. According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), ICE activity has increased statewide—even as some liberal cities across the country have scaled back enforcement under the Biden-era policies, now being reversed since President Trump’s return to office.
The message from Tennessee lawmakers is clear: law and order comes first.
