The Fight

Franklin County is the starkest example in Ohio of a city-county split on immigration enforcement. While Columbus (the county seat and state capital) passed measures banning 287(g) agreements and imposing a moratorium on detention centers, the Franklin County Sheriff’s office dramatically escalated cooperation with ICE — handing 50 people to ICE in the first half of 2025 alone, compared to just 11 in all of 2024 (a 350%+ increase). Meanwhile, ICE agents conducted 20 arrests inside the Franklin County Municipal Courthouse in 2025, chilling access to the justice system for immigrant communities.

Key Details

Courthouse Arrests

• 20 people arrested by ICE inside Franklin County Municipal Court in 2025, plus 1 in 2026 (per court figures); a separate count puts it at 18 inside the courthouse and 3 detained nearby since 2025
• Activists pushing judges to adopt rules barring ICE from courthouse premises
• Arrests chill access to courts — witnesses, victims, and defendants all at risk
• Part of broader national pattern of ICE courthouse enforcement (see also Essex County MA)

Judge-Rule Campaign (escalated early 2026)

• The Franklin County Common Pleas Court already bars ICE arrests inside the courthouse under Local Rule 111, which prohibits warrantless civil arrests — but the Municipal Court retains long-standing rules permitting ICE arrests inside
• Common Cause Ohio: nearly 10,000 people have sent letters to Municipal Court judges demanding the rule change (as of Feb 2026)
• A new state bill (introduced ~May 13, 2026) would bar civil immigration-related arrests in some locations (courthouses among the sensitive sites targeted)

Sheriff Cooperation

• H1 2025: Sheriff handed 50 people to ICE (vs 11 in all of 2024)
• Ohio Immigrant Alliance called for sheriff to repeal pro-ICE policy (March 2026)
• Sheriff’s cooperation operates independently of Columbus city policy

City of Columbus Response

• Passed 287(g) ban — city police cannot enter immigration enforcement agreements
• Moratorium on private detention centers within city limits
• Columbus City Council banned ICE detention centers in city limits (per ACLU March 2026 report)
• Zoning/permitting measures to block for-profit detention construction

April 2026 City-County Jail Contract Standoff

• Apr 13, 2026: Columbus City Council was scheduled to approve its annual ~$2M contract with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office for housing city detainees. Public Safety Committee chair Councilmember Emmanuel Remy referred the ordinance back to committee, citing unanswered questions about the Sheriff’s ICE-cooperation policies and notifications to ICE about foreign-born residents. Sheriff Dallas Baldwin reportedly threatened the city in retaliation.
• Late April 2026: After weeks of public testimony and review, Columbus Council ultimately approved the $2M payment to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office for jail services — a fiscal-realism outcome that did not extract policy concessions on the sheriff’s pro-ICE posture.

Operation Buckeye (Dec 2025)

• 280+ arrests in Columbus area in one week (Dec 16-21, 2025)
• 93% men, 80% Latino; less than 7% had criminal records
• 2 Puerto Rican U.S. citizens detained
• Total central Ohio arrests in 2025: 701+

ACLU “ICE in Ohio” Report Findings (March 2026)

• Franklin County courthouse arrests specifically cited as evidence of enforcement overreach
• ACLU Ohio + partners sued ICE/DHS over warrantless arrests (filed March 19, 2026)

Why This Matters

The city-county split in Franklin County illustrates the limits of municipal sanctuary measures when county-level officials cooperate with ICE. Columbus can ban 287(g) for city police and block detention centers within city limits, but the county sheriff operates under different authority and has massively escalated ICE cooperation. The courthouse arrests are particularly significant because they weaponize the justice system itself — people who show up for court hearings, traffic tickets, or as witnesses face the risk of ICE detention.

Downstream legal lever (Sixth Circuit): People arrested in Franklin County are typically held downstream in Butler or Mahoning County — both inside the Sixth Circuit, which ruled FOR individualized bond hearings in Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft (May 11, 2026; § 1226(a) bond hearings required for long-term interior residents the government tried to hold under § 1225(b) mandatory detention). That ruling is the most direct post-arrest path to release for Columbus-area detainees. No Ohio habeas releases applying Lopez-Campos surfaced as of June 2, 2026. See bond-hearing-circuit-split-2026.

Sources

• Activists push for rule change after 20 ICE arrests at Franklin County Municipal Court - 10TV
• Franklin Co. Sheriff must repeal pro-ICE policy - Ohio Immigrant Alliance (Mar 2026)
• ACLU of Ohio ICE in Ohio Report (Mar 2026)
• Columbus leaders want to limit ICE enforcement - WOSU (Feb 13, 2026)
• DHS Touts Success of Operation Buckeye (Jan 8, 2026)
• Columbus Council delays vote on jail contract over ICE policy (Yahoo, Apr 14, 2026)
• Columbus Council approves $2M payment to Franklin County jail (10TV)
• Campaign pushes Franklin County municipal judges to change rules to limit ICE in courthouse - WOSU (Feb 13, 2026)
• Ohio bill looks to stop civil immigration-related arrests in some locations - Spectrum News (May 13, 2026)
• See also: columbus-oh-anti-ice-measures for full Columbus response details