The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Immigration arrests, deportations down
New administation’s orders to rein in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has led to a sharp drop in arrests.
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s orders to rein in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement led to a sharp drop in arrests by the agency last month, even though a federal judge in Texas has blocked the new administration’s 100-day “pause” on deportations.
The number of immigrants taken into custody by ICE officers fell more than 60% in February compared to the last three months of the Trump administration, according to data reviewed by The Washington Post. Deportations fell by nearly the same amount. The change indicates the extent to which the Biden administration has been able to move forward with plans to reshape U.S. immigration enforcement.
The administration has issued temporary guidelines to ICE officers narrowing enforcement priorities to focus on national security, recent border crossers and criminals with aggravated felony convictions who pose a threat to public safety. Officers must seek permission in writing from senior supervisors before attempting to arrest fugitives who don’t fit those categories, a change Biden officials say will make better use of the agency’s resources. Republican lawmakers have slammed Biden’s enforcement approach. The administration has not yet published any information on the impact of the narrower priorities, but supporters say the guidelines will help reform a troubled agency by allowing officers to target violent offenders and the most serious public safety threats.
Biden is under pressure from immigrant activists and advocacy groups galvanized during the Trump administration who want to see ICE transformed if not dissolved. Trump afforded ICE broad latitude to arrest immigrants and told the agency he wanted them to deport “millions.”
On Tuesday the attorneys general of Arizona, Montana and Florida extended a lawsuit against the Biden administration seeking to block the new ICE enforcement priorities, on the grounds their states will be harmed if more immigrants are released and not deported, particularly those with criminal charges or convictions.
ICE arrests and deportations fell dramatically during the pandemic, as the agency took steps to protect officers from exposure to the coronavirus. Last month ICE carried out about 2,600 deportations, down from 5,583 in January, the latest figures show.