First US Congressional Hearing on 287(g): Texas Jail Project Invited to Testify (Livestream Friday 05/15/26)
May 14, 2026
Our own, Dalila Reynoso, Smith County resident, and Texas Jail Project staff member working at the unique intersection of criminal, immigration and mental health systems, is the only advocate invited from Texas to provide testimony at a Shadow Hearing in Congress about the real-world impact of 287(g) enforcement in Texas. Ms. Reynoso will be providing oral and written testimony alongside a panel of advocates from across the country.
Topics: 287(g), Immigration, Smith county
Texas Jail Project 287(g) Resources
Our own, Dalila Reynoso, Smith County resident, and Texas Jail Project staff member working at the unique intersection of the criminal, immigration and mental health systems, has been invited to provide testimony to the US Congressional committee on Homeland Security (Shadow Hearing) on 15th May 2026 Friday about the harmful impacts of 287(g) enforcement in Texas. Ms. Reynoso will be offering oral and written testimony alongside a panel of advocates from across the country.
Take a deeper dive into our casework, stories and resources to learn more about the chaos and disruption caused by 287(g).
TJP Press Release 05/15/2026 TJP Written Testimony Frontline Stories Mental Health and 287(g) News articles documenting 287(g) program in Texas
Stories from impacted families
Rep. Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03) to Hold Shadow Hearing on ICE’s Growing Use of State and Local Police to Turbocharge Deportations
As Congress moves to hand DHS another blank check through reconciliation, Rep. Ramirez and civil rights advocates warn that ICE’s “show me your papers” national deportation policing force is harming communities across America
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Friday, May 15, Representative Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03) will host “Deputized for Disaster: The Trump Administration’s Dangerous Use of Local Police to Fuel Deportations and Chaos in American Communities,” a Congressional shadow hearing on how the Trump administration is turning state and local police into a deportation force through the 287(g) program.
The hearing comes as Congress considers whether to provide Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol another $70 billion in new funding through reconciliation, on top of the $170 billion in taxpayer money received last year that the agency claims can be spent with no strings attached. At the same time, the administration has rapidly expanded 287(g) partnerships from just 200 agreements when President Trump took office to more than 1,500 today, allowing it to enlist more than 10,000 state and local police in deportations.
Speakers will address how local police have turned traffic stops, public gatherings and highways into deportation traps, creating extreme fear in communities — especially in rural and conservative areas.
WHAT:
Congressional shadow hearing to discuss the 287(g) program’s role in the Trump administration’s deportation agenda.
WHO:
- Rep. Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03)
- Shaylyn “Shay” Fluharty, Civil Rights Lawyer, will speak on behalf of two sisters whose traffic stop in Florida led to immigrant detention and abuse of their young children
- Stefania Artega, Co-executive Director, Carolina Migrant Network, will testify on the racial profiling and sheriff checkpoints she experienced as a teenager and the harms of 287(g) in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina
- Dalila Reynoso, Advocate, Texas Jail Project, will testify on how traffic stops and other routine interactions with law enforcement have turned jails into deportation pipelines across East Texas
- Hallie Pond, Community Organizer, Minnesota, will testify on local police collusion with ICE in the aftermath of Operation Metro Surge, and harms to community trust and children
- Azadeh Erfani, Policy Director, National Immigrant Justice Center, will testify on harms of local police collaboration with ICE in Indiana and Illinois
- Other members of Congress
WHEN:
Friday, May 15 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. ET
WHERE:
Cannon House Office Building, Room 340
27 Independence Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003
The hearing will also be livestreamed here: https://x.com/repdeliaramirez