Sheriff Zoerner statement on 287(g) agreement

For well over a year, I have been working directly with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement leadership and with sheriffs across this country to bring the 287(g) program to Kenosha County. This is not a new idea, and it is not reactionary. It is the result of deliberate, responsible planning focused on one mission: protecting the people of Kenosha County.

Despite repeated misinformation, let me be absolutely clear: the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office works closely and consistently with our federal law enforcement partners. We always have. I have personally worked for more than a year with ICE and multiple sheriff’s offices around this country to finalize and implement this agreement.

I will not tolerate the release of violent criminal offenders back into our community. Period.

As sheriff, I use every lawful tool at my disposal to protect our citizens. My partnership with federal law enforcement ensures my office has the authority, resources and operational capability necessary to do what the public expects of us: keep our families and neighborhoods safe.

I currently serve on the Border Security Committee for the National Sheriffs’ Association, where I work alongside sheriffs from across the nation to address illegal immigration, transnational crime and border security. Through that role, I participate in national policy discussions and operational briefings on the real-world impact border security failures have on local communities. I have also taken part in border-security training and firsthand observations of enforcement operations along the southern border, including in Texas and Arizona.

Here in Kenosha County, my office works daily with our federal partners. We have personnel serving as task force officers with the DEA and ATF, and I have served as chairman and vice chairman of the Wisconsin Advisory Committee to the North Central High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. These partnerships have directly strengthened our ability to combat the scourge of drug infestation and organized criminal activity into our community.

On December 18, 2025, I signed the 287(g) Memorandum of Agreement under the Jail Enforcement Model. The agreement was subsequently signed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office. I received the fully executed agreement back on January 12, 2026. We have already selected staff for this program and are actively moving forward with implementation.

Let me be very clear about what this agreement is. This 287(g) agreement applies only to individuals who are already lawfully in custody for serious criminal offenses.

This agreement is focused on violent criminals, felony drug offenders, repeat offenders and individuals with documented histories of assault, sexual violence and other serious crimes who are already in our jail because they committed serious offenses. These are people who pose a demonstrated threat to public safety. This agreement ensures they are not released back into our community.

Currently, the Kenosha County Jail houses 742 inmates. Of those, 24 have ICE detainers, a number that has remained fairly consistent over the past year.

My responsibility is to protect Kenosha County. With this agreement in place, my office now has clear federal legal authority to identify and hold qualifying detainees. This is a lawful, necessary and proactive step to make sure violent offenders are not put back on our streets.