Gov. Mike DeWine said Friday it is unwise and a “mistake” for the federal government to take legal status away from hundreds of thousands of Haitians living in the U.S., including Ohio.
“The gangs are controlling a good part of (Haiti), it’s extremely violent, the economy is in shambles, the government does not function, the police are virtually worthless,” DeWine told reporters Friday morning.
And refugees from the Caribbean island have contributed to both state and local economies, he said.
“Having said that, that’s not my decision,” DeWine said. “I’m the governor of Ohio, this is a decision for the federal government, this is a decision for the President of the United States.”
Absent court action, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will terminate protected status for around 350,000 beneficiaries on Tuesday at 11:59 p.m.
As of Friday, DeWine was unsure whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents would then carry out deportations in Springfield. Between 12,000 and 15,000 immigrants from Haiti have lived there, a southwest Ohio city with a population of less than 60,000, for years.
Ohio has gotten ‘mixed signals’ on action by ICE, he said, but state and local law enforcement agencies are getting ready either way.
“Our officers are trained, they know how to de-escalate situations, we expect ICE to follow good police procedures,” DeWine said. “If, that’s a big if, if ICE comes in, we expect them to follow good police procedures as well.”
Earlier in January, federal agents fatally shot Minneapolis residents Alex Pretti and Renee Good, in different incidents. Their deaths have prompted broader debate over immigration efforts by the Department of Homeland Security.
In an interview Thursday with the Statehouse News Bureau, U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno said he wants action by ice to be unnecessary because he believes Haitians in Ohio should have deported themselves.
“Everybody always knew the date, so we shouldn’t have to surge a force in there, to forcibly deport people who knew for a long time that they have to do that on their own,” Moreno said.
As of July 2025, the U.S. Department of State heavily advised against traveling to Haiti.
