The Trump administration’s Department of Homeland Security is sharply criticizing New Jersey Democratic Gov. Mikie Sherrill after she announced plans to launch an online portal designed to allow members of the public to report sightings of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, as reported [1] by Fox News.
Sherrill, a U.S. Navy veteran, recently said, “We are going to be standing up a portal, so people can upload all their cell videos and alert people,” adding, “If you see an ICE agent in the street, get your phone out, we want to know.”
New Jersey is Turning into Minnesota FAST
This is EXTREMELY dangerous guidance from an elected official, and will get somebody HURT or WORSE! God Forbid!
When you visit this so-called “portal” it says RIGHT ON THE BOTTOM “Filing this report does not mean that the Office of… https://t.co/eBi3RwkGkd [2]
— Jay Costa (@JayCostaUSA) February 12, 2026 [3]
In response, a DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital, “This certainly looks like obstruction of justice.”
“This action by the Governor encourages violence against our officers and obstruction of our operations,” the spokesperson continued, noting that “our officers are already facing a highly coordinated campaign of violence against them and a more than 1,300% increase in assaults against them.”
The spokesperson added that ICE enforcement activity in New Jersey would not be necessary if state and local officials cooperated with federal authorities.
“ICE law enforcement would not have to be in the field in New Jersey if we had state and local cooperation. Governor Sherrill is not letting that happen, which puts New Jerseyans in danger,” the spokesperson said.
DHS also highlighted several recent ICE arrests in New Jersey, describing those taken into custody as convicted criminals. According to the agency, ICE arrested Mexican national Jose Ortega Villalva, whom it said was convicted of a sex offense against a child, fondling, and molestation of a minor.
Another arrest involved Ecuadoran national Rodrigo Roman Basantes, who DHS said was convicted of endangering the welfare of a child through sexual contact and sexual assault of a victim under 13.
ICE also arrested Felix Quintana Diaz, a Cuban national convicted of homicide, and Wilmer Patzan Pirir, a Guatemalan national convicted of making a terroristic threat, according to the agency.
DHS said ICE further arrested Manuel Mejia Morales, a Salvadoran national convicted of rape and assault.
A spokesperson for Sherrill responded to Fox News Digital, stating that “keeping New Jerseyans safe is Governor Sherrill’s top priority,” and that Sherrill and Acting Attorney General Jennifer Davenport “will announce additional actions to protect New Jerseyans from federal overreach” in the coming days.
Sherrill referenced the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in confrontations involving ICE agents in Minneapolis. She alleged that agents shot Pretti “execution style,” describing the incident as “unacceptable.”
“They have not been forthcoming,” Sherrill said of ICE. “They will pick people up. They will not tell us who they are. They will not tell us if they’re here legally. They won’t check. They’ll pick up American citizens.”
On the planned reporting portal, Sherrill stated, “We want documentation, and we are going to make sure we get it.”
The White House also weighed in. Abigail Jackson, a spokesperson for the White House, said in a statement to Fox News Digital, “If Sherill was as committed to tracking down criminal illegal aliens as she was to ICE officers, New Jersey residents would be much safer.”
Jackson added, “ICE officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults because of dangerous, untrue smears by elected Democrats.”
“Just the other day, an officer had his finger bitten off by a radical left-wing rioter,” she continued. “ICE officers act heroically to enforce the law and protect American communities, and local officials should work with them, not against them.”
The dispute marks the latest clash between state leaders and the Trump administration over immigration enforcement and cooperation between federal and local authorities.