Majority of immigrants taken in by ICE did not have serious criminal convictions.

Question

There is a lot of debate whether ICE is doing good or bad with the people they are taking in, and whether it is even legal for them to be doing the things they are. It has been said that less than 10% of immigrants taken into the custody of ICE since October had serious criminal convictions (https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/30/dhs-debunks-fake-news-media-narratives-june), but this is false according to DHS. An article reads, "In President Trump's first 100 days, 70% of ICE arrests were criminal illegal aliens with convictions or pending charges" (https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/30/dhs-debunks-fake-news-media-narratives-june).

It has also been said that the immigrants with no criminal record have now become the largest group in ICE detention. This can make it hard to believe that the statement above really is false. The Guardian says, "The number of people with no criminal history arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and detained by the Trump Administration has now surpassed the number of those charged with crimes" (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/26/immigrants-criminal-record-ice-detention).

Answer 1

After conducting my own research, I found that this claim does appear to be true. Multiple reliable data sources show that most people detained by ICE do not have a criminal record. Although a portion of detainees do have some type of conviction or pending charge, the majority do not, and many of the convictions that do exist are for minor, non-violent offenses. This challenges the common belief that ICE primarily targets individuals who pose a serious threat to public safety. For example, recent reporting shows that “immigrants with no criminal record are now the largest group in US immigration detention” (Congress GOV). This demonstrates a major shift in ICE’s enforcement patterns and suggests that the system is focusing heavily on individuals with no documented history of criminal activity. Additional data reinforce this point. According to an analysis shared by the Cato Institute, “ICE data show that 65 percent of people taken into custody had no criminal convictions, and more than 93 percent had never been convicted of any violent offense” (CATO). This means that not only are most detainees not criminals, but an overwhelming majority have never committed a violent act. Many of the convictions that do appear in ICE records are tied to immigration violations, traffic offenses, or other low level infractions that do not indicate a threat to public safety. These findings matter because they contradict the widely promoted narrative that ICE’s detention and deportation efforts are focused on only people who have criminal records. When the majority of detainees have no criminal background, it raises questions about the goals, priorities, and fairness of the current immigration enforcement system. Overall, the evidence makes it clear that claims about ICE focusing on dangerous criminals are misleading, and that the reality of who is being detained looks very different from how it is often portrayed.

Articles: https://www.congress.gov/119/meeting/house/118692/documents/HMKP-119-JU00-20251118-SD001.pdf

https://www.cato.org/blog/65-people-taken-ice-had-no-convictions-93-no-violent-convictions

Answer 2

According to my research, the claim that the "majority of immigrants taken in by ICE did not have serious criminal convictions" appears to be true. In an article by the Guardian, "Immigrants with no criminal record are now the largest group in US immigration detention, according to data released by the government" (Guardian). According to some graphs from tracreports.org, "73.6% of current detainees have no criminal convictions" (tracreports.org), and according to an analysis by CATO Institute, "65 percent, or 133,687 individuals, had no criminal convictions. . . [and] more than 93 percent of ICE book-ins were never convicted of any violent offenses" (CATO). With all of this information I can confidently say that this claim is true and is supported by multiple sources.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/26/immigrants-criminal-record-ice-detention , https://tracreports.org/immigration/quickfacts/ , https://www.cato.org/blog/65-people-taken-ice-had-no-convictions-93-no-violent-convictions

Answer 3

Recently the US government under the Trump administration has greatly increased the investment Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) so deport people from the country. There is lots of controversy weather it is legal and if the people they take even deserve to be deported. 

According to CATO institute says that 70% of deported people have no criminal conviction and 43% have not been convicted or charged in the month of November. As well as of all the people deported in the past year only 90,000 had convictions. Out of over 500,000 depurations.

5% of People Detained By ICE Have Violent Convictions, 73% No Convictions | Cato at Liberty Blog

DHS Removes More than Half a Million Illegal Aliens From US | Homeland Security

 

Answer 4

The Department of Homeland Security directly challenges the idea that ICE primarily targets non-criminals. The DHS states, "Less than 10% of immigrants taken into IDE Custody since October had serious criminal convictions is false. They also claim that Secretary Noem has directed ICE to target the "worst of the worst," including gang members, murderers, and rapists. The Guardian reports that the number of people with no criminal history arrested by ICE and detained by the Trump administration has surpassed the number of those charged with crimes. While DHS denies the claim, multiple external sources and data analyses strongly indicate that a majority of individuals detained have either no criminal convictions or only minor ones. The truth hinges on the definition of a serious criminal conviction versus any conviction. If serious implies violent or high-level felonies, the claim that the majority lack these appears true.