Florida lawmaker proposes bill allowing families to sue over crimes committed by illegal immigrants

One Florida state representative is looking to expand the state's crackdown on migrant crime with a bill that would fine police for refusing to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and allow families to sue government entities that "dropped the ball" over crimes committed by illegal immigrants.

The Shane Jones Act, named in honor of an Air Force veteran and father of four killed outside Tampa in a 2019 motorcycle crash involving an intoxicated illegal immigrant driving without a license, was proposed on Monday to give "teeth" to existing immigration policy.

"It's a great idea because it sends the message that we will not tolerate our local law enforcement or local governments not cooperating with immigration officials when they don't enforce immigration laws," said State Rep. Berny Jacques Thursday on "Fox & Friends First."

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Federal agents detain a person after attending a court hearing at immigration court at the Jacob K. Javitz Federal Building in New York City on July 1, 2025. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Jacques, a Republican who introduced the bill, explained that victims would be suing the government entity that "failed to enforce" immigration laws. 

He also said the Sunshine State has been leading on the issue.

"We've been telling folks that this is not a sanctuary state, and we're not just telling folks, we've put that into law, so this puts teeth into that law to make sure that no agency of the state, no political subdivision, would violate that," he added.

Nikki Jones, the widow of Shane Jones, joined the program on Thursday to discuss the bill and how losing her husband has devastated her family.

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This graphic, taken from "Fox & Friends First," details the proposed Shane Jones Act in Florida. (Fox & Friends First)

"Now, I'm a single mom, and trying to hold a house down and nobody holding accountability was extremely hard," she said.

"He [the illegal immigrant] had contact with law enforcement three times prior; ICE was never involved, and he just kept getting let out on our soil to continue to commit traffic violation crimes."

Nikki said, if she had been able to sue at the time of her husband's death, the compensation would have helped.

"My biggest fear, in the long run, is losing my home, mine and my girls, and we should not be living in that fear over a crime that was absolutely 100% preventable," she said.

Jacques said proceeds from the "very strong fine" for failing to enforce immigration laws would go toward compensating victims of migrant crime.

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According to a New York Post report, that fine would be $10,000.

"We hope this is a strong deterrent because it's not going to be an easy path when you have grieving widows, grieving mothers," Jacques said.

"There are a lot of folks who've lost their loved ones from illegal aliens… and it is 100% preventable when you knew these people were here, and you engage in catch and release. We don't have that in Florida, but we want to make sure that we strengthen that in our laws if ever there is an official that thinks they can violate the law."