Los Angeles County considers creating ICE-free zones

By Chris Woodward
The Center Square

Editor’s note: This story has been updated since its initial publication to include a comment from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Los Angeles County is considering designating ICE-free zones as a response to the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

The proposal comes from Los Angeles County Supervisors Lindsey Horvath and Hilda Solis, who sit on a board that governs the county. The plan is for an ordinance to be drafted and brought before the board in 30 days.

Speaking during Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Horvath said, “Our federal government is killing its own citizens” in broad daylight and in front of witnesses and cameras.

“People have been shot; people have been killed; families have been shattered,” said Horvath.

One of those people was Renee Good, a mother of three who was shot and killed last week by an ICE agent in Minnesota.

The Trump administration says Good hit the ICE agent with her vehicle and that the agent acted in self-defense. The same agent had been dragged by a car in a June 2025 incident. Still, Horvath claimed Good was “acting within her full rights as a legal observer,” adding that Good was one of several people to die in ICE operations around the country.

“This motion creates ICE-free zones by drawing a clear boundary,” said Horvath, who represents the 3rd District of Los Angeles County. “LA County will not allow its property to be used as a staging ground for violence caused by the Trump administration.”

According to Horvath, the county’s public spaces “should be places of care and safety,” not fear.

“We may not control federal enforcement everywhere, but we do control our own property, and we have a responsibility to act when lives are at stake,” said Horvath.

Solis, who represents the county’s 1st District, followed Horvath’s remarks by saying that news reports have been full of ICE-related raids, shootings and deaths. Solis called that an outrage.

“You do not have the right to come in and harass people without a warrant,” said Solis.

Supervisor Janice Hahn represents the county’s 4th District. Hahn said it is “disturbing that we’ve come to this point,” adding the county cannot allow its property to be a “tool” for the work that ICE is doing.

“I hope this sends a message,” said Hahn.

The Center Square sought comment from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which questioned how the new ordinance would benefit the people of Los Angeles.

“This is illegally illiterate. Enforcing federal immigration laws is a clear federal responsibility under Article I, Article II and the Supremacy Clause,” a department spokesperson told The Center Square late Tuesday afternoon in an email.

“While Los Angeles sanctuary politicians continue to release pedophiles, rapists, gang members, and murderers onto the city’s streets, our brave law enforcement will continue to risk their lives to arrest these heinous criminals and make Los Angeles safe again,” the spokesperson added.