Can legal immigrants be deported for minor crimes in the US?
Executive summary
Legal immigrants can be deported for certain criminal convictions and for some minor offenses depending on immigration law definitions and enforcement priorities; federal guidance and recent enforcement data show many people deported or detained have no or only minor criminal records (e.g., ICE/DETENTION figures showing large shares without convictions and reporting that 71% of detainees had no criminal conviction) [1] [2] [3]. Legal-advice sources and reporting note that crimes like “crimes involving moral turpitude” (CIMTs), some misdemeanors (including DWIs or traffic offenses), and drug or firearms offenses can trigger removal, though waivers and legal defenses sometimes exist [4] [5] [2].
1. What the law says: deportable crimes vs. discretion
U.S. immigration law lists categories that make noncitizens removable — aggravated felonies, certain drug offenses, crimes involving moral turpitude, and other specific statutes — and those categories can include offenses that in state law might be misdemeanors or minor infractions; legal guides explicitly warn that even some low-level convictions (for example, a single CIMT with a one-year sentence or multiple CIMTs) can trigger removal proceedings [4] [5].
2. Practical enforcement: priorities and who gets detained
Federal enforcement agencies have broad discretion to arrest and remove noncitizens who are “removable,” and recent ICE and DHS reporting shows enforcement nets include many people without serious criminal histories. ICE’s own materials and independent reporting indicate large numbers of detainees and removals involve people with no convictions or only minor charges — for example, reporting that a large portion of detainees had no criminal convictions and that during a 2025 enforcement period more than 21,000 people with no criminal record were arrested [1] [6] [2].
3. Minor crimes singled out in practice: traffic, DUI, low-level offenses
Multiple studies and reporting document that many detained or deported people have minor offenses recorded, particularly traffic violations and DWIs. Analyses found DWIs/DUI and traffic-related charges among detainees and that in some datasets most of those with pending charges were for minor offenses such as traffic violations [2] [3] [6].
4. The gap between law and labeling: “criminal alien” is elastic
Government statements often emphasize removal of “criminal aliens,” but analysts and news organizations note the term lacks a clear statutory definition and is used broadly; that contributes to confusion when agencies report high percentages of deportees as “criminals” while a substantial share of detainees have no conviction or only minor infractions [1] [2] [6].
5. Defenses, waivers and limits to deportation
Immigration law provides some avenues that can prevent removal after certain convictions: waivers such as the 212(h) waiver may allow noncitizens to remain despite convictions for certain CIMTs or minor drug offenses, and immigration counsel often pursues these options [5]. Available sources do not mention the full range of litigation or the precise success rates of such waivers in the current enforcement environment; that information is not found in current reporting here.
6. Trends under current policy: ramped-up removals and shifting priorities
Recent reporting and government releases document a marked increase in enforcement activity and a shift in agency priorities that has raised deportations and detentions, and commentators link those shifts to agencies detaining more people without serious criminal records; independent analyses show detention populations grew and that many detainees lacked convictions [2] [3] [6].
7. Competing narratives: security vs. civil-rights framing
Official DHS and ICE materials present removals as targeting dangerous or fugitive offenders, while reporting from outlets such as The Guardian and analysis organizations highlight that many arrested or deported persons had no criminal record or only minor offenses, and that being undocumented is a civil—not criminal—violation; these are competing frames in the sources [1] [6] [2].
8. What this means for a legal immigrant
If you are a lawful permanent resident or hold another legal status, certain convictions can make you removable under federal law; agencies have discretion and enforcement can sweep in people with minor offenses, but legal defenses and waivers may be available and outcomes depend on specific charges, sentencing, and the enforcement environment [4] [5] [2].
Limitations: this analysis is drawn only from the provided sources and does not attempt to catalog all crimes that might lead to deportation, nor to quantify waiver success rates; those specifics are not found in the current reporting supplied (available sources do not mention waiver approval rates) [5].