Sheriff candidates spar over cooperation with ICE ahead of primary
BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE OBSERVER
LEE COUNTY — Two Republican candidates running for Lee County Sheriff are offering competing visions regarding the agency’s involvement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with the 2026 primary elections less than a month away.
While the debate between current Lee County Sheriff Jay Jones and his challenger, Cam Hunt, a former Lee County Sheriff’s deputy, began earlier in the campaign, their differing views have have drawn increased attention following a recent officer-involved shooting.
While law enforcement officers attempted to execute a warrant for first-degree rape on April 15, a sheriff’s deputy was shot in the arm by the alleged suspect, who the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency has since confirmed was a male Guatemalan national.
Although there has been no statement released by ALEA pertaining to the man’s immigration status, Hunt said in a social media post, that he had received information from multiple sources alleging the individual was in the U.S. illegally. Hunt also Hunt also claimed Jones’s lack of participation in the ICE 287(g) program has made Lee County less safe.
According to Hunt, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office is one of 31 sheriff’s departments in Alabama that are not participating in the ICE 287(g) program.
The program, which began in 1996, allows the federal agency to delegate some immigration enforcement duties to local and state law enforcement officials, which include identifying and arresting those accused of being in the United States illegally.
In an April 17 social media post on an official campaign account, Hunt criticized Jones, saying the alleged lack of cooperation poses a danger to public safety in Lee County.
“Let me be clear. This is a failure of leadership,” Hunt’s post read. “[The ICE 287(g) program] is a proactive tool designed to prevent exactly this type of situation. Had that program been in place here, there is a very real possibility this violent offender would have already been off the streets. Lee County is one of the fastest-growing counties in Alabama. Growth without a proactive public safety strategy is a risk we cannot afford.”
Jones responded in a public statement a day later, calling Hunt’s accusations “reckless” and “wrong” while alleging Hunt’s statement showed he isn’t knowledgeable about how the sheriff’s office operates. Jones said Hunt either intentionally, or based on his lack of law enforcement experience, inadvertently fails to mention the administrative, and liability costs that the program incurs.
“Cam Hunt’s reckless accusations are not only wrong, they demonstrate his lack of experience and knowledge of operations within the Sheriff’s Office,” Jones said. “He clearly doesn’t understand basic law enforcement operations and is using the tragedy of an officer-involved shooting to intentionally mislead voters with a cheap political stunt.
“The absence of 287(g) paperwork has never and will never stop our department from deporting illegal immigrants through direct, effective partnerships with ICE,” Jones continued. “Frankly, I find it offensive and disappointing that Cam Hunt has chosen to use this tragic incident to try and score political points. His comments are not only false, they should concern every citizen of Lee County, as he has perfectly demonstrated his inability to separate politics and public safety. This is the kind of inexperience and political theater we cannot afford in the sheriff’s office.”
According to a database published on ICE’s official website, 21 of Alabama’s 67 sheriff’s offices — along with 21 other municipal law enforcement agencies — currently participate in the 287(g) program. The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is not one of them.
ICE’s Montgomery field office did not respond to a request for comment about the relationship between federal immigration officers and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office before Tuesday’s press deadline.
Hunt said voters need leadership that gets ahead of threats, not leadership that reacts after tragedy strikes while Jones said he believes voters deserve leadership grounded in experience and proven performance.
Information contained in this article does not amount to an endorsement of either candidate, and The Observer is declining to issue an endorsement in this race.
