Detainers issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for incarcerated undocumented immigrants have seen a significant decrease during the early months of the Biden administration, according to new data. This decline in detainers is part of a larger trend of reduced interior immigration enforcement under the current administration.
Detainers are requests issued by ICE to be notified when an undocumented immigrant in the custody of another law enforcement agency is being released, so that ICE agents can initiate deportation proceedings. The use of detainers has been a major point of contention in the “sanctuary city” debate, where certain jurisdictions refuse to cooperate with ICE detainers.
ICE considers detainers to be an effective tool in preventing criminals from re-entering local communities by allowing them to take custody of criminal noncitizens within a jail. Failure to honor detainers and release serious criminal offenders undermines ICE’s ability to protect public safety.
However, data obtained by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University reveals that detainers have been used much less frequently under the Biden administration compared to the previous administration. The number of detainers issued dropped from around 10,000 per month at the end of the Trump administration, which had reached a peak of 15,000 per month in 2018, to fewer than 3,000 in the initial months of the Biden administration. In March 2021, the number of detainers fell to only 2,200, but gradually increased to just under 4,000 by September 2021.
It’s important to note that the number of detainers issued does not necessarily indicate the number of immigrants transferred into ICE custody. However, it is an indicator of the level of interior enforcement intensity. The highest use of detainers was during the Obama administration, with approximately 300,000 detainers issued in fiscal year 2010. This number dropped to under 100,000 by fiscal year 2015, before peaking at 175,000 per year under the Trump administration.
In fiscal year 2021, TRAC’s data shows that fewer than 75,000 detainers were issued, demonstrating a significant decline. This drop coincided with the Biden administration’s implementation of a more restricted ICE priorities policy. Initially, the Department of Homeland Security attempted to impose a moratorium on all ICE deportations, but this was blocked by a federal judge following a lawsuit from Texas. The administration then implemented significant restrictions on priorities, focusing on recent border crossers, national security threats, and public safety threats. Other measures were also taken to limit where ICE could make arrests.
This new strategy, which deviated from the Trump administration’s approach, saw a sharp decrease in deportations. In fiscal year 2021, only 59,011 illegal immigrants were deported, a significant decrease from 185,884 in fiscal year 2020 and 267,258 in fiscal year 2019. The number increased slightly to 72,177 in fiscal year 2022. The majority of deportations were carried out by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), with ICE’s involvement resulting in just 28,204 deportations in fiscal year 2021, down from 31,557 in fiscal year 2021 and 62,739 in fiscal year 2020.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas praised the new strategy, stating that it had “fundamentally changed immigration enforcement in the interior.” He highlighted that the policy explicitly stated that an undocumented noncitizen’s presence in the United States would not be the sole reason for initiating enforcement actions, marking a departure from the indiscriminate enforcement approach of the previous administration.
Although the ICE priorities were initially blocked due to a lawsuit from Republican states, the Biden administration recently won a victory at the Supreme Court, which determined that the GOP-led states did not have standing to challenge the policy. Mayorkas welcomed the ruling and expressed the department’s intention to reinstate the guidelines, which help focus limited resources and enforcement actions on individuals who pose a threat to national security, public safety, and border security.
This shift in immigration enforcement priorities is part of the administration’s efforts to implement their own approach to immigration policy. By utilizing more targeted and focused enforcement actions, the aim is to better align law enforcement resources with their mission and the authorities and resources provided by Congress.
In conclusion, the data illustrates a significant decrease in detainers issued by ICE under the Biden administration, reflecting a shift in interior immigration enforcement priorities. This new strategy has resulted in a decline in deportations compared to previous years. The administration’s focus on specific categories of undocumented immigrants and the limitations placed on ICE’s arrest capabilities have led to a decrease in the overall numbers. This approach has been praised by Secretary Mayorkas as a fundamental change in immigration enforcement that prioritizes national security, public safety, and border security.
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