Immigration & Detention
Being undocumented in the U.S. is not a crime, it’s a civil infraction, which we typically don’t detain people for. Instead, we should consider community based alternatives like case management programs that other countries have successfully and meaningfully implemented. These programs are also a lot cheaper than detention is. International human rights research finds alternatives can protect migrant rights while meeting enforcement goals.
Trump's administration has bolstered ICE in multiple ways:
- offered a $50,000 bonus to entice people to join
- reduced training requirements
- offered relaxed background checks
Trump also green-lit the reduction of ICE training from 5-6 months to about 47-48 days, likely in honor of Trump being the 47th President of the United States, though his administration denies this claim. ​
ICE Under Trump
Only 5% of people in ICE detention are convicted of violent crimes, with nearly 73% having no criminal convictions whatsoever.
- Cato Institute​​ & Homeland Security Newswire
Under Trump, 4,000 children have been detained by ICE, with 1,000 of them being held for longer than the court mandated 20 day lmit -- in some cases for weeks and even months.
More than 30 people died in ICE detention under Trump in 2025. That’s a death toll we haven’t seen since ICE’s first full calendar year in 2004 under Bush. In 2026, we continue to see at least 11 reported detainee deaths under Trump, with 6 of them in January, and 4 being within the first ten days of the year.
Greed Creates Chaos
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ATD, or Alternatives to Detention, is a supervision program sometimes implemented by ICE for people in removal proceedings that allows them to remain in their community instead of being detained. While a step in the right direction, this program is far from perfect and needs massive reforms. NIJC states that ATD relies heavily on GPS ankle monitors, reports of harassment from ICE officials, and that the program is often used after wrongful detention to increase surveillance and supplement detention.
- The National Immigrant Justice Center
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Despite ATD's many flaws, ICE’s own data shows that ATD is not only cheaper than detention, but that it has high rates of legal compliance, with court appearance rates being 90-99%.
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Companies like GEO & CoreCivic profit off of filling beds in detention, so they lobby behind politicians who weaponize political fear and push these inhumane policies for their own financial gain. Also, the current congressional budgeting structure doesn’t authorize ICE to redirect money to ATD like it should. We need major budgeting reforms in regard to immigration & detention policy if we ever want to see major change. Some reforms I'd like would include: ​the elimination of capacity requirements, ​capping detention use to only violent or dangerous criminals, m​andate ATD for all non dangerous individuals, ​and the expansion of case management based Alternatives to Detention.
- Brennan Center for Justice, Systemic Justice Project, Public Citizen, & Forbes
