Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch spoke on WDUN's "The Martha Zoller Show" Monday morning to talk about his office's effort to combat gangs in the county and about ICE operations.
Couch, who has been sheriff of Hall County since 2012 and recently won re-election in November 2024, said gang activity has been an issue at some level since the 1990's.
"I worked homicides back then and it was a pretty violent time. We had a lot of first-generation immigrants who came into the country and there was a lot of trouble right off the bat," Couch said. "We really focused and we continue to focus on drug investigations and firearm investigations, which led to gang investigations, because that's the trade they're in."
Despite drawing a parallel between an immigration boom in the 90's and the spike in gang activity, Couch said the two are not always directly connected.
"A lot of folks hear the word gang, or the phrase gang member, and they immediately think illegal alien. Well, those two don't always go hand-in-hand," Couch said. "In fact, of all the gang members that we've identified currently in Hall County, none of them are undocumented or here illegally."
Couch said his office has identified around 200 people in Hall County as gang members. He said while his office has been aggressive in pursuing alleged gang members, he also said it's important for the public to take steps to keep themselves safe.
He said the primary concern for the public is not violent crime, but property crime.
"First off, don't leave your car unlocked. That's the number one crime that gangs look for," Couch said. "Be vigilant at all times."
Back on the topic of immigration, Couch said his department has continued to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement on their operations in the county. The issue took center stage in Hall County in late January just days after President Donald Trump took office when hundreds took to downtown Gainesville to protest ICE activities.
Couch said he feels like ICE has been more active, but he said nothing has changed with the sheriff's office's relationship with the agency.
"Nothing's really changed since President Trump has taken office, other than the ICE agents are now free to do their jobs," Couch said. "I hear that from them. They've had their hands tied for many, many years and now they're able to actually get back and do the work at hand."
Couch said there has been an ICE agent presence at the Hall County Jail for decades, along with Homeland Security investigators working alongside Hall County criminal investigators. He said more than 70 people in Hall County have been detained by ICE since the start of the year.
"There was one individual that has been removed that was a criminal alien from Venezuela," Couch said. "That was the most serious thing that we've had...You're not talking a great number of people, but I would (expect to) see that number probably increase before the end of the year."
Couch said the sheriff's office is continuing to work on all fronts to help keep the community safe.
"In any community, you've got to be vigilant, because there are bad characters in every community," Couch said.
