Democrat mayors love to talk tough about sanctuary policies.
Then James Uthmeier sends one letter.
And Tampa's Jane Castor just proved exactly how that story ends.
Uthmeier Put Tampa on a Deadline – and Castor Blinked
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier didn't ask Castor nicely.
He accused her of forcing sanctuary policies on the Tampa Police Department in violation of Florida law.
His March 11 letter cited specific language in Tampa's existing policy and set a hard deadline – reverse the policies by March 31 or face legal consequences.
He posted the warning on X, where it racked up 134,000 views, 565 comments, and 8,700 likes within days.
https://twitter.com/AGJamesUthmeier/status/2031777436510060757?s=20
"Mayor Castor is forcing sanctuary policies on the Tampa Police Department, which violates Florida law," Uthmeier wrote.
"These policies must be reversed immediately, or there will be consequences."
Castor's department had written rules preventing Tampa Police officers from sharing information about crime victims and witnesses with federal immigration authorities – a backdoor sanctuary policy dressed up as victim protection.
"These policies not only frustrate the laws of the State, but they also jeopardize the safety of Tampa residents," Uthmeier wrote.
Castor Caved – Then Tried to Call It a Clarification
Five days later, Castor sent Uthmeier a letter confirming Tampa had updated its policy.
She promised the revised language would be distributed to officers "effective immediately."
"The City of Tampa has no intention of violating state or federal law," Castor wrote.
Translation: she got caught, she got threatened, and she backed down.
The updated policy rewrites Tampa's immigration procedures to match Florida Statute 908.104 word for word – the state law governing cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
Officers may now ask about immigration status during lawful arrests and detentions.
Tampa Police will do what Florida law has required them to do all along.
This Is What Accountability Actually Looks Like
Florida passed SB 168 in 2019 – a law banning sanctuary city policies statewide and requiring local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
Tampa had been participating in the 287(g) program, which trains and credentials local officers to work alongside ICE on immigration enforcement.
https://twitter.com/AGJamesUthmeier/status/2033668659378372873?s=20
Then Castor's team buried a carve-out inside the program procedures – rules that insulated an entire category of illegal immigrants from any contact with federal authorities, as long as they could be labeled a victim or witness.
That's the sanctuary loophole Democrats love.
It sounds compassionate, but what it actually does is hand illegal immigrants a shield ICE can never pierce, regardless of what else they may be doing in the country.
Uthmeier named it, threatened consequences, and watched a Democrat mayor rewrite her own policy in less than a week.
The revised procedures don't strip victim protections entirely – Florida law already restricts detention of crime witnesses and victims under specific circumstances.
But the discretionary language Castor's team used to keep ICE out is gone.
That's what state-level enforcement looks like when an attorney general actually uses the power voters gave him.
Uthmeier gave Castor until March 31 to comply.
She didn't wait three weeks to fight it – she fixed it in five days.
Sources:
- Jesse Mendoza, "Jane Castor responds to James Uthmeier warning, revises Tampa Police immigration policy," Florida Politics, March 16, 2026.
- S.G. de León y León, "Mayor Jane Castor updates Tampa immigration policies following threats of removal from Florida AG," 10 Tampa Bay News, March 17, 2026.
- Florida Statute 908.104, "Cooperation with federal immigration authorities."
