Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner drew a hard line Wednesday, warning ICE agents deployed to Philadelphia International Airport that they are not above local law.
Speaking at a press conference, Krasner made clear he answers to no one in the White House.
“You commit crimes within the jurisdiction that is the city and county of Philadelphia, I prosecute you. That is how it works. No, I don’t take a phone call from president saying, ‘Let them go.’ No, the president cannot pardon you,” he said.
Krasner went further, invoking the fatal 2020 police encounter in Minneapolis as a warning of what he would not tolerate.
“Yes, I will put you in handcuffs and I will put you in a courtroom and, if necessary, I will put you in a jail cell if you decide to make the terrazzo floor of this airport, anything like what you did in the streets of Minneapolis, which involved the criminal homicide of unarmed, innocent people. We are not having that,” he added.
ICE agents have been visible this week at airports across the country, with sightings reported in Philadelphia, Atlanta, New York, Cleveland, Newark, Houston, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, and San Juan, Puerto Rico, among others.
The Department of Homeland Security declined to confirm where its agents are stationed, citing operational security.
DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told The Hill that President Trump had ordered the deployment of hundreds of ICE officers to airports hit by the disruption, using funds already appropriated by Congress.
Bis said the move was intended to support TSA operations and reduce air travel disruptions, but that specific locations would not be disclosed for safety reasons.
Trump has said ICE agents will stay at airports nationwide until the DHS shutdown ends.
The shutdown, now in its 40th day, stems from a standoff between the two parties over funding.
Democrats have withheld support for a full DHS budget, pressing for immigration enforcement reforms including judicial warrants for operations, mandatory body cameras on agents, and a ban on agents wearing masks in the field.
Republicans have blocked Democratic proposals to fund non-ICE DHS agencies, including the TSA, separately.
Trump weighed in on the mask issue Monday, posting on Truth Social that he is “a BIG proponent of ICE wearing masks” but asking agents to remove face coverings while working at airports.
A Trump-backed deal to end the shutdown floated Monday is facing resistance from both Democrats and conservative Senate Republicans, pushing back any vote on reopening the TSA and other affected agencies.
