Immigration Detention Surpasses 60,000, Setting a New Contemporary Record

The population of individuals held in immigration detention has climbed to a new peak exceeding 60,000, surpassing the modern record established during the initial Trump administration, based on internal data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Since January, when roughly 39,000 people were detained, the numbers have surged significantly. This increase aligns with the Trump administration’s intensified efforts to accelerate arrests and deportations. Recent ICE records reveal that more than 1,100 individuals were detained just since the previous Friday, averaging about 380 detentions daily.

The capacity for immigration detention has expanded substantially since ICE's inception in 2003. Two decades ago, the average daily detainee count hovered around 7,000, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association. The prior peak under the current government counting methodology was 55,654 detainees in August 2019.

These latest statistics also illustrate a shift in enforcement focus. While most detainees in January were apprehended by Customs and Border Protection—responsible for securing the nation’s borders and ports—ICE has become the primary agency conducting arrests within the country’s interior during the second term of the Trump presidency.

President Trump has prioritized intensifying immigration enforcement during his second term. His administration, along with allies in Republican-led states, has actively expanded government resources to enhance the capacity for arresting, detaining, and deporting immigrants. Despite re-election on a platform promising mass deportations, the president has expressed impatience over the pace of removals.

Conducting immigration arrests demands significant resources and extensive surveillance operations. To support these efforts, the administration has outlined ambitious plans to grow ICE, following a congressional budget increase that boosted the agency’s funding from approximately $8 billion to nearly $28 billion.