The Trump administration has selected a veteran Immigration and Customs Enforcement official to serve as the agency’s No. 2.
Charles Wall, ICE’s current principal legal advisor, will take over as deputy director, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Thursday on social media. Wall replaces Madison Sheahan, who is stepping aside to run for Congress in her home state of Ohio.
“For the last year, Mr. Wall served as ICE’s Principal Legal Advisor, playing a key role in helping us deliver historic results in arresting and removing the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens from American neighborhoods,” Noem stated. “Mr. Wall has served as an ICE attorney for 14 years and is a forward leaning, strategic thinker who understands the importance of prioritizing the removal of murderers, rapists, pedophiles, gang members, and terrorists from our country.”
“I look forward to working with him in his new role to make America safe again,” the DHS chief continued, adding that Wall’s appointment takes effect immediately.
Sheahan, 28, previously served as executive director of the South Dakota Republican Party and as head of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. She announced earlier Thursday that she is running for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, a seat held for 43 years by Democrat Marcy Kaptur, 79, the longest-serving woman in congressional history.
As ICE’s principal legal advisor, Wall oversaw more than 2,000 attorneys and staff who represent the administration in deportation proceedings and other immigration enforcement matters, according to his agency biography. As deputy director, he will manage the day-to-day operations of ICE and lead a workforce of more than 20,000 employees.
Wall’s promotion comes as ICE faces mounting pressure from Democrats following a deadly ICE-related shooting in Minneapolis. Lawmakers on the left have renewed calls for sweeping reforms and have threatened to defund the agency altogether. In response, DHS has surged federal immigration enforcement across Minnesota, drawing backlash from local Democrats and violent left-wing protesters.
“We cannot and we should not continue to fund agencies that operate with impunity, that escalate violence and that undermine the very freedoms this country claims to uphold,” Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar told reporters Tuesday, alongside other lawmakers pledging to strip the agency of funding. “ICE has no place in terrorizing Minneapolis or any American community.”
President Donald Trump on Thursday warned he could invoke the Insurrection Act if Minnesota leaders fail to do more to protect ICE agents from violence.
