Acting ICE Director Resigns

AP Photo/Tom Brenner

Acting ICE chief Todd Lyons resigned from the agency on Thursday, submitting a resignation letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin that noted his plans to stay on through May.

Lyons will stay on to help with the transition as Mullin begins his new position after taking over from former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. 

“Thanks to his leadership, American communities are safer,” Mullin said in a statement. “We wish him luck on his next opportunity in the private sector.”

Mullin did not specify the reasons for Lyons’ departure after 20 years at the agency. Lyons was appointed to the agency in March of last year, replacing Caleb Vitello. He joined ICE in 2007.

Lyons headed ICE throughout President Donald Trump’s mass deportation operation, overseeing around 584,000 deportations, as well as the fatal shooting of Renee Good during Operation Metro Surge. Lyons declined to apologize to Good’s family at a congressional hearing in January.

The following month, Lyons said that two officers involved in the January shooting of a Venezuelan immigrant had made “untruthful statements” under oath, and both officers were placed under investigation by the Justice Department.

Border Czar Tom Homan was reportedly a close ally of Lyons, with the two more in line on deportation strategy than Noem or former Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino. The alleged difference of opinion between the two camps led to consistent rumors of friction at DHS.

Homan told NBC on Thursday that under Lyons’ leadership, “ICE achieved a record number of removals in the first year of this Administration, despite unprecedented challenges.”

“I commend him for a distinguished law enforcement career and the countless contributions he has made to protect our country and advance its interests,” said Homan.

Lyons’ tenure under Trump was marked by the administration’s deportation agenda, which saw Lyons face the president and deputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller’s demand for thousands of immigrants to be deported a day.

“Todd is a phenomenal patriot and dedicated leader who has been at the center of President Trump’s historic efforts to secure our homeland and reverse the Democrats’ sinister border invasion,” said Miller of Lyons’ time at ICE.

Lyons was summoned to appear in court personally by a federal judge in January, who demanded that the chief explain why the agency failed to carry out court-ordered bond hearings for detained immigrants on multiple occasions.

The acting ICE chief was hospitalized at least twice in recent months, with current and former officials describing him as, at times, “visibly upset and struggling,” due to pressure from the administration to carry out the president’s deportation agenda.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!