Approximately 13,000 immigrants convicted of homicide, either in the U.S. or abroad, are currently living freely in the U.S. outside of ICE detention, according to data provided to Congress by ICE. These immigrants are part of ICE’s “non-detained” docket, meaning they have pending immigration cases but are not prioritized for detention or cannot be located by ICE. The data was sent in response to a request from Congressman Tony Gonzales of Texas. Many of these migrants crossed into the U.S. under previous administrations, including President Trump’s.
Trump used this data to criticize Vice President Kamala Harris and current immigration policies during a campaign stop in Michigan. The White House has not yet commented on the data release, which came as a surprise to officials. Some of these immigrants may have never had contact with ICE, while others may have been released by state and local officials without ICE notification. ICE prioritizes the arrest of migrants convicted of serious crimes like homicide, but limited resources make it difficult to locate and arrest all individuals on their non-detained docket.
NBC News witnessed ICE agents arresting individuals convicted of murder and attempted murder in Maryland, highlighting the challenges and manpower required to locate and arrest convicted criminals living freely in the U.S. Lechleitner, the Acting ICE Director, mentioned that more local jurisdictions are reconsidering their sanctuary policies in light of the increased attention on migrant crime.
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