What Is the True Scope of Trump’s Immigration Offensive?

Recent data on the enforcement of immigration laws reveals the true scope of the Trump administration’s offensive. According to CNN, immigrant detentions have increased nearly 70% since early 2025 and the death rate in custody has reached its highest level since the pandemic.

How Immigrant Arrests Have Changed Under the Current Administration

The Trump administration maintains that arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) concentrate on people with serious criminal histories. However, as CNN notes, most of those arrested have no criminal convictions, according to data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) offers a different reading of the figures. The agency claims that nearly 70% of those arrested by ICE have been convicted or charged with a crime, including pending charges in that calculation.

Tom Homan, White House border czar, has insisted that prioritizing national security threats does not exclude other people from immigration enforcement. «If you’re in the country illegally, you’re never out of the crosshairs,» he said, as cited by CNN.

Criticism from Rights Organizations Over «Criminal» Counts

David Bier of the Cato Institute questioned the way DHS reports its figures. According to CNN, Bier argued that the agency inflates the number of «criminal» arrests by including pending charges that do not result in conviction.

Bier added that an ICE arrest can deny a person their right to due process—their opportunity to appear before an immigration court. Meanwhile, agents from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) are making far fewer arrests today than before, according to the same report.

The tightening of border controls shifted much of the burden of arrests inland, where ICE primarily operates. Still, CBP agents have had a more visible role in immigration operations within the United States.

Current Legal Framework: The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) establishes that every person subject to a removal proceeding has the right to appear before a judge from the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) before being deported. When an arrest is executed under expedited procedures, that right to due process can be limited, which explains much of the current legal debate.

Use of Force and Shootings Under Public Scrutiny

According to CNN, at least 21 people have been shot by ICE and CBP agents on duty during Trump’s second term. Two deaths from shootings during immigration operations drew particular national attention this summer.

A DHS spokesman defended the actions of agents to CNN. «ICE and CBP agents are trained to use the minimum amount of force necessary to resolve dangerous situations,» the spokesman said.

Immigration rights advocates and some local leaders accuse DHS of putting communities at risk with aggressive tactics. Federal authorities are investigating several of these shootings, as are some state and local agencies.

Official Deportation and Detention Figures

DHS claims the Trump administration has deported 985,000 people, though it did not break down that total by agency. The figure includes ICE removals, CBP border removals, and repatriations carried out by the Coast Guard.

As of July 2026, nearly 66,000 people were in ICE custody. That figure represents an increase of nearly 70% from the number of detainees when Trump took office, according to CNN’s report.

Both advocates for increased deportation and organizations protecting undocumented people agree on one point: they are calling on the government to publish more disaggregated data. Only then, they say, will the public be able to clearly follow the real scope of the offensive.

The Human Face Behind Deaths in Custody

At least 57 people have died in ICE custody since the start of Trump’s second term, according to agency figures. At least 10 of those deaths were considered presumed suicides, and several victims had pre-existing medical conditions.

A CNN investigation found that more than a dozen of those cases could be linked to inadequate medical care. The finding was based on autopsies, court records, and interviews with detainees and experts in correctional health.

DHS rejects accusations of medical negligence. «Being detained is a choice,» the agency argued, referring to a self-deportation program that offers a stipend of $2,600 to those who decide to leave the country voluntarily.

Physicians for Human Rights and Human Rights First disagree with that official stance. In a June analysis cited by CNN, both organizations concluded that the mortality rate in custody has more than doubled during this term.

What the Immigrant Community Can Do With This Information

Families with a loved one in ICE custody can verify their location and status through ICE’s own detainee locator system. Consulting with an accredited immigration attorney helps understand what due process protections apply in each case.

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