House Judiciary report finds California agencies rejected 8,901 federal hold requests

A new House Judiciary Committee report says three California law enforcement agencies rejected 8,901 federal detainer requests between 2020 and 2026.

The 22-page document, released by the committee on October 29, details records obtained from Los Angeles police, the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office, and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Rep. Tom McClintock of California led the investigation after sending letters in June to request these files.

According to the figures in the report, Los Angeles police honored only four of 4,177 detainers received from January 2020 through June 2026. The San Francisco Sheriff’s Office rejected all 2,201 requests it received during the same period, extending through August 2026. In San Diego, county authorities declined 2,527 detainers from January 2023 to June 2026, including 894 in the final year of that window.

The committee cites Immigration and Customs Enforcement data alleging that California authorities released 4,561 immigrants sought by federal agents between January 20, 2025, and early February 2026. The report lists criminal histories for some of these individuals, including homicide, sexual assault, kidnapping, burglary, weapons offenses, and child abuse.

Specific cases illustrate the committee’s findings. Herbert Nixon Flores, a Salvadoran immigrant, had been deported 10 times before his arrest in September 2020 in Los Angeles on domestic violence charges. Police released him after ICE requested a hold. The report also references the February 2022 Sacramento church shooting. David Mora Rojas, a Mexican national who overstayed his visa, killed three people before taking his own life. He had been arrested five days prior on charges including battery on a police officer and driving under the influence. He was released on bail despite an ICE request for notification.

Anatoly Varfolomeev, a naturalized U.S. citizen, provided testimony regarding the November 2021 death of his 19-year-old daughter, Anya, and her friend Nikolay Osokin. A Mexican national previously deported in 2016 and 2018 crashed into their vehicle while driving near 100 mph. Varfolomeev told lawmakers in September that the tragedy was a direct result of anti-American border policy. He called for the end of what he described as sanctuary madness.

The report notes that California’s sanctuary framework began with the Trust Act in 2013 and expanded with the California Values Act in 2017. These laws limit state and local use of resources for federal immigration enforcement. ICE detainers ask local agencies to detain individuals for up to 48 hours or notify federal agents before release. San Diego County strengthened its protections in December 2024, a move Sheriff Kelly Martinez said complied with state law.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office has previously disputed the characterization that California blocks cooperation. In a February statement, his office said the state coordinated the transfer of more than 12,000 people from state prisons to ICE custody since 2019. The administration noted that federal officials failed to pick up roughly one in eight state prisoners with outstanding detainers. Republicans are now advancing the Shut Down Sanctuary Policies Act, which the Judiciary Committee moved forward in March.