Boston immigration official takes charge of ICE, amid GOP attacks on his home turf

In just a few months, Todd Lyons has risen from running the New England field office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to landing the top job at the agency in Washington D.C.

Named acting director of ICE over the weekend, Lyons is taking on the role at a time when President Trump looks to ramp up deportations and has vowed to shut down the southern border. 

Lyons came to work for the ICE New England office in 2017, after first joining the agency in Dallas in 2007. He later became assistant director of field operations for Enforcement and Removal Operations. He has worked under both Democratic and Republican presidents, navigating their various executive orders to carry out their immigration agendas.

The second Trump administration has taken aggressive aim at immigration policies in Boston and Massachusetts, pledging to bring "hell" to the city if it doesn't assist ICE more in its crackdown and threatening to withhold federal funding.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, in announcing Lyons' appointment, said the agency needs to "reinstitute a culture of results and accountability."

Several local leaders praised the move and described Lyons as a fair and tough enforcer of immigration law.

During a 2019 forum run by the anti-immigration think tank, the Center for Immigration Studies, Lyons said when new presidential administrations change immigration policies, it can result in confusion. He said many ICE officials agree with the need for broad immigration reforms.

"The hardest thing to do is do immigration enforcement by executive orders," Lyons said at the Boston forum. "Each president and administration has its own take on immigration enforcement. The constant change and flux is something that really hurts our operations - and almost morale for ICE officers - in that we almost don't know day to day, or by administration change, how we're going to do our job."

It's not yet known whether Lyons' appointment will mean even more focus on Boston. Lyons is an alumnus of Boston College High School and attended New England College of Henniker, N.H., according to his LinkedIn profile. He also served in the Air Force and was a law enforcement officer in Florida.

On CBS' "Face the Nation" Sunday, Noem, of Homeland Security, said Lyons has a long history with Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, and his appointment will "allow us to partner with local law enforcement officials to make sure that we truly are following through on enforcing the law and if you break our law, then there are going to be consequences."

It was Homan who threatened he is "bringing hell" to Boston.

Lyons replaces Caleb Vitello, who was demoted last month. Trump has expressed frustration over delays in his mission to implement the largest mass deportation effort in U.S. history. The Washington Post reported ICE has been instructed to make 1,200 to 1,500 immigration arrests per day.

Louis Murray,  co-founder of the group Bostonians Against Sanctuary Cities, applauded Lyons' appointment saying, " I'm not surprised that Todd Lyons' professionalism and leadership has come to the attention of President Trump."

Murray said he expects more dogged immigration action in Massachusetts under Lyons, calling him "a new sheriff in town."

"I think it's a message to every blue state. They're going to take the toughest enforcement and removal operation chief in the country and put him in charge of ICE."

Louis Murray

"I  think it's a message to every blue state," Murray said in an interview. "They're going to take the toughest enforcement and removal operation chief in the country and put him in charge of ICE."

Former Bristol County Sheriff Tom Hodgson, who led Trump's election campaign in Massachusetts, said he has worked with Lyons for years when he was sheriff. Hodgson called the appointment a "great choice."

"I think you're probably going to see more more aggressive activities to identify  criminals, and you'll see more of them being deported because of Todd's knowledge and experience," Hodgson said.

Hodgson also expects Lyons will increase deportations and the number of local correctional facilities that hold ICE detainees under federal contracts.

For much of Hodgson's 25-year tenure, his jail contracted with ICE to hold federal immigrant detainees. That contract was terminated in 2021 by Homeland Security under the Biden administration following accusations of civil rights violations in response to a riot and a federal judge's order in a class-action suit to release immigrants. Hodgson's successor, Democrat Paul Heroux, has said he would not pursue a new contract and has warned leaders of other jails to "think carefully" before doing so.

A notable case Lyons worked on with federal prosecutors in Massachusetts was that of Newton District Court Judge Shelley Joseph. She was accused of helping a 38-year-old man who had been deported twice from the U.S. and faced drug charges exit the courthouse and avoid immigration authorities in 2018. The Department of Justice dropped the charges against Joseph in 2022.

Patricia Hyde is now the acting field office director for the Boston ICE office.