James H. Percival
James Percival | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| General Counsel of Homeland Security | |
| Assumed office December 22, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Meyer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Hamilton Percival |
| Education | University of California, Santa Barbara (BA), University of Virginia School of Law (JD) |
James Hamilton (Jimmy) Percival is an American lawyer and public servant. Since December 2025 he has served as General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Early life and education
Percival received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law.[1] Between college and law school, he was a missionary in South America.[1]
Career
Percival served as chief of staff to Ashley Moody when she was Attorney General of Florida.[2] He also served as a member of Florida's State Retirement Commission.[3]
In March 2025, President Donald Trump officially nominated Percival to be General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). During his confirmation hearing, he testified that he saw FEMA personnel skip over certain hurricane victims because of their political affiliation as an example of what he described as DHS being "off-mission."[4] On December 18, 2025, the Senate confirmed Percival's nomination in a 53–43 vote.[5]
In January 2026, Percival wrote an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal arguing that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were not required to follow the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.[6]
In February 2026, Percival told Congress that he and then-Secretary Kristi Noem did not seek to end or conclude any ongoing investigation's by the agency's inspector general.[7]
Percival defended then-Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin after she faced accusations of improperly awarding government contracts to her husband's company.[8][9]
In April 2026, Percival said he received death threats while speaking at an event at the University of California, Los Angeles.[10]
In May 2026, Percival issued a memo encouraging DHS personnel to use existing authorities more aggressively to increase asylum-related fraud cases.[11]
Personal life
Percival is married and has six children.[4]
References
- 1 2 "Hon. James Hamilton Percival, II". The Federalist Society. September 7, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2026.
- ↑ "Senate Homeland Security Committee Holds Confirmation Hearing for Key DHS Positions | FAIRUS.org". www.fairus.org. 2025-06-09. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ "Governor Ron DeSantis Appoints Two to the State Retirement Commission | Executive Office of the Governor". www.flgov.com. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- 1 2 "United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Statement of James H. Percival" (PDF). June 5, 2025.
- ↑ "PN26-37 - Nomination of James Percival for Department of Homeland Security, 119th Congress (2025-2026)". www.congress.gov. 2025-12-18. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ "Legal scholars raise concerns about internal ICE policy authorizing entry into homes without judicial warrants - CBS Minnesota". www.cbsnews.com. January 23, 2026. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ Beitsch, Rebecca (February 9, 2026). "DHS demanded list of ongoing investigations from its watchdog". The Hill. Archived from the original on February 11, 2026. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ Mizell, Preston (2026-03-04). "DHS defends McLaughlin against allegations husband's company profited millions from ad contracts: 'Baseless'". Fox News. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ "Kristi Noem's Remaining Allies at DHS Face a Major Problem". Yahoo News. 2026-06-03. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
- ↑ News, Latest & Breaking News on Fox. "DHS lawyer says UCLA 'utterly failed' to stop protest chaos at law school appearance". 930 WFMD Free Talk. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ↑ "DHS memo directs ICE to ramp up asylum-related fraud cases - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. May 26, 2026. Retrieved 2026-06-09.