The Department of Homeland Security removed a controversial list of so-called "sanctuary jurisdictions" from its website over the weekend after sharp criticism from local officials and the National Sheriffs' Association. The list, published Thursday, aimed to identify cities, counties, and states the Trump administration deemed uncooperative with federal immigration enforcement. By Sunday, the DHS webpage displayed a "Page Not Found" error.
The move comes after Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and officials faced escalating backlash over the list's accuracy and rollout. "Some of the cities have pushed back," Noem said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures." "They think because they don't have one law or another on the books that they don't qualify, but they do qualify. They are giving sanctuary to criminals."
The list had included communities across the political spectrum-many of which dispute the designation entirely. In California, Huntington Beach appeared on the list despite its lawsuit challenging the state's sanctuary law and its local resolution declaring it a "non-sanctuary city." In Wisconsin, Shawano County administrator Jim Davel said that the county has approved no immigration sanctuary policies, attributing the inclusion to a confusion with a 2021 gun rights resolution.
Sheriff Kieran Donahue, president of the National Sheriffs' Association, said the DHS had published "a list of alleged noncompliant sheriffs in a manner that lacks transparency and accountability." He added, It "violated the core principles of trust, cooperation, and partnership with fellow law enforcement."
San Diego city attorney Heather Ferbert also criticized the designation. San Diego has never adopted a sanctuary policy, she said, calling the list "politically motivated." Ferbert added, "We suspect this is going to be used as additional threats and fear tactics to threaten federal funding."
The DHS stated that the sanctuary designations were based on several criteria including self-identification, failure to share information with federal immigration authorities, and local legal protections for undocumented immigrants. A senior DHS official said the list would be updated regularly and could change at any time.
Trump directed the creation of the list through an executive order issued in late April, accusing sanctuary jurisdictions of supporting "a lawless insurrection." The list reportedly included misspellings and misidentifications, further fueling criticism from communities listed.
Noem, who aligns with Trump's aggressive immigration stance, did not clarify why the list was taken offline. DHS has not commented publicly on its removal. However, the Wayback Machine, an internet archive tool, showed the page was still live as of Saturday.
