For the first time under the second Donald Trump administration, the largest group of people currently held in U.S. immigration detention are those with absolutely no criminal record, according to the latest official data released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). This is huge news, and it completely contradicts the administration’s repeated narrative that the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) massive dragnet is primarily focused on going after dangerous criminals.
The new data, which was obtained by The Guardian, shows an unprecedented shift in focus, and honestly, the numbers are wild when you look at them closely. The official statistics are clear: 16,523 people currently in ICE detention were arrested by the agency and have no criminal record whatsoever. On the other hand, the number of those who do have a criminal record is actually lower, sitting at 15,725, with another 13,767 having pending criminal charges.
