Trump Picks Former Private Prison Executive to Lead ICE as Industry Profits Surge
cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/49158
> 
>
>
> The Trump administration announced Tuesday that former private prison executive David Venturella will lead US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in an acting capacity after the agency's current director departs at the end of the month.
>
> Venturella has been a senior adviser to ICE since February 2025 and previously worked at the private prison giant GEO Group for more than a decade, most recently serving as the company's senior vice president of client relations until 2023. GEO Group is a major beneficiary of federal contracts, running [immigration detention centers](https://investors.geogroup.com/news-releases/news-release-details/geo-group-awarded-15-year-contract-us-immigration-and-customs) for ICE.
>
> The Washington Post [noted](https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2026/05/13/dhs-picks-detention-industry-veteran-david-venturella-lead-ice/) that GEO Group also "owns the only company with an ICE contract to track immigrants through GPS ankle monitors."
>
> "A federal ethics rule generally bars government employees from working on contracts awarded to their former employers for one year, but [the administration granted him a waiver from this rule](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/01/ice-david-venturella-geo-immigration-detention/ "https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/01/ice-david-venturella-geo-immigration-detention/")," the Post observed.
>
> GEO Group's PAC [donated heavily](https://www.citizensforethics.org/reports-investigations/crew-investigations/private-prison-behemoth-is-first-corporation-to-max-out-to-trump/) to President Donald Trump's 2024 campaign and has seen a hefty return on its investment. The company [reported $254 million in profits](https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-family-detention) for fiscal year 2025—a 700% increase compared to the previous year—and [boasted](https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2026/02/12/geo-group-geo-q4-2025-earnings-call-transcript/) "record-setting new contract wins totaling up to $520 million."
>
> As an ICE adviser, Venturella has [advocated](https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-to-name-former-private-prison-official-as-acting-ice-leader-5af5d649) for the use of warehouses to detain immigrants, a practice that has [drawn nationwide outrage](https://www.commondreams.org/news/ice-warehouse-detention). NBC News noted that "after he retired from GEO, Venturella was a consultant for the company, advising on new and existing contracts, according [to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission](https://investors.geogroup.com/static-files/15aea0e3-2f9c-41ec-9b7a-81012810d81d)."
>
> The Trump administration's decision to elevate Venturella to the head of ICE comes as congressional Republicans are working to approve tens of billions of dollars in additional funding for the agency, even as [deaths in detention rise](https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/pressroom/releases/2026/death-georgia-ice-prison-prompts-advocates-call-immediate-independent) and immigration officers unleashed by the president continue to face backlash for fatal abuses across the country.
>
> The GOP's budget reconciliation proposal, according to an [analysis](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/senate-pushes-70-billion-funding-ice-cbp-accountability-measures/) by the American Immigration Council, includes over $38 billion for ICE to "expand and sustain enforcement operations by hiring and equipping personnel across its divisions, supporting detention and removal transportation, upgrading technology and facilities, and expanding [287(g) agreements](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/287g-program-immigration/) with local law enforcement."
>
> Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), a lead sponsor of [legislation](https://ramirez.house.gov/media/press-releases/ramirez-clarke-unveil-legislation-defund-ice-melt-ice-act) that would terminate all existing federal contracts for immigration detention, [said](https://x.com/repdeliaramirez/status/2054372478575645018) Tuesday that Venturella's appointment as acting ICE chief "is to ensure Trump's corporate bosses continue profiting from our communities' pain."
>
> "But Americans demand oversight and accountability," said Ramirez. "We must Melt ICE, end detention, and dismantle [the Department of Homeland Security]."
>
> ---
>
> **From [Common Dreams](https://www.commondreams.org/feeds/news.rss) via [This RSS Feed](https://www.commondreams.org/feeds/news.rss).**
> 
>
>
> The Trump administration announced Tuesday that former private prison executive David Venturella will lead US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in an acting capacity after the agency's current director departs at the end of the month.
>
> Venturella has been a senior adviser to ICE since February 2025 and previously worked at the private prison giant GEO Group for more than a decade, most recently serving as the company's senior vice president of client relations until 2023. GEO Group is a major beneficiary of federal contracts, running [immigration detention centers](https://investors.geogroup.com/news-releases/news-release-details/geo-group-awarded-15-year-contract-us-immigration-and-customs) for ICE.
>
> The Washington Post [noted](https://www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/2026/05/13/dhs-picks-detention-industry-veteran-david-venturella-lead-ice/) that GEO Group also "owns the only company with an ICE contract to track immigrants through GPS ankle monitors."
>
> "A federal ethics rule generally bars government employees from working on contracts awarded to their former employers for one year, but [the administration granted him a waiver from this rule](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/01/ice-david-venturella-geo-immigration-detention/ "https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/08/01/ice-david-venturella-geo-immigration-detention/")," the Post observed.
>
> GEO Group's PAC [donated heavily](https://www.citizensforethics.org/reports-investigations/crew-investigations/private-prison-behemoth-is-first-corporation-to-max-out-to-trump/) to President Donald Trump's 2024 campaign and has seen a hefty return on its investment. The company [reported $254 million in profits](https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-family-detention) for fiscal year 2025—a 700% increase compared to the previous year—and [boasted](https://www.fool.com/earnings/call-transcripts/2026/02/12/geo-group-geo-q4-2025-earnings-call-transcript/) "record-setting new contract wins totaling up to $520 million."
>
> As an ICE adviser, Venturella has [advocated](https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-to-name-former-private-prison-official-as-acting-ice-leader-5af5d649) for the use of warehouses to detain immigrants, a practice that has [drawn nationwide outrage](https://www.commondreams.org/news/ice-warehouse-detention). NBC News noted that "after he retired from GEO, Venturella was a consultant for the company, advising on new and existing contracts, according [to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission](https://investors.geogroup.com/static-files/15aea0e3-2f9c-41ec-9b7a-81012810d81d)."
>
> The Trump administration's decision to elevate Venturella to the head of ICE comes as congressional Republicans are working to approve tens of billions of dollars in additional funding for the agency, even as [deaths in detention rise](https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/pressroom/releases/2026/death-georgia-ice-prison-prompts-advocates-call-immediate-independent) and immigration officers unleashed by the president continue to face backlash for fatal abuses across the country.
>
> The GOP's budget reconciliation proposal, according to an [analysis](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/senate-pushes-70-billion-funding-ice-cbp-accountability-measures/) by the American Immigration Council, includes over $38 billion for ICE to "expand and sustain enforcement operations by hiring and equipping personnel across its divisions, supporting detention and removal transportation, upgrading technology and facilities, and expanding [287(g) agreements](https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/287g-program-immigration/) with local law enforcement."
>
> Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), a lead sponsor of [legislation](https://ramirez.house.gov/media/press-releases/ramirez-clarke-unveil-legislation-defund-ice-melt-ice-act) that would terminate all existing federal contracts for immigration detention, [said](https://x.com/repdeliaramirez/status/2054372478575645018) Tuesday that Venturella's appointment as acting ICE chief "is to ensure Trump's corporate bosses continue profiting from our communities' pain."
>
> "But Americans demand oversight and accountability," said Ramirez. "We must Melt ICE, end detention, and dismantle [the Department of Homeland Security]."
>
> ---
>
> **From [Common Dreams](https://www.commondreams.org/feeds/news.rss) via [This RSS Feed](https://www.commondreams.org/feeds/news.rss).**