Most growth in ICE detention population immigrants with no criminal convictions

According to the Deportation Data Project, a group that collects immigration numbers, about half the people in detention don’t have criminal convictions. That’s close to 30,000 people in detention, without a criminal record — the group that has grown the most in recent months.

“You listen to Tom Homan and Stephen Miller, they’re saying things like they are going after the worst of the worst, the people who are murderers,” says UCLA Professor Graeme Blair, referring to President Trump’s ‘Border czar’ Tom Homan and key White House Aide Stephen Miller. “That’s just not what the data says about the people that they are actually arresting.”

In the first few months of the Trump administration, the number of detentions was around the same as during the Biden administration. But in recent weeks, there’s been a push to detain more people, spearheaded by the recent goal of 3,000 ICE arrests per day.

For many, this policy has meant an upending of decades of life, community and business in the U.S. Such is the case of Pastor Maurilio Ambrocio from Guatemala. Ambrocio had lived in the U.S. without legal status for 30 years. In addition to his religious work, he had a landscaping company. He had no criminal record.

Ambrocio had what is called a stay of removal, which required him to check in with immigration officials at least once a year, let them know he was employed and hadn’t committed any crimes. He’d been doing that for 13 years.

A few months ago, at a regular check-in he was arrested and placed in detention. Last night he was deported back to Guatemala.

“I’m not necessarily comfortable with where we’re at right now”, said Greg Johns, who lives across the street from the Ambrocio family. He voted for Trump, but is feeling disappointed. “You’re going to take a community leader, a pastor, a hard working man … what, did you need a number that day?”