Fact check: What percentage of arrests by ICE are criminals

1. Summary of the results

Based on the available data, the percentage of ICE arrests involving individuals with criminal records varies significantly depending on the time period and location examined. The analyses reveal conflicting statistics that paint a complex picture:

• Nevada data shows approximately 85% of ICE arrests involve individuals with some criminal history, as about 15% had no criminal record ^[1]
• California data from June shows a stark contrast, with about 57% of those arrested having clean criminal records, meaning only 43% had criminal histories ^[2]
• ICE detention data indicates that 71.5% of current detainees have no criminal convictions as of July 2025 ^[3]
• Historical Trump administration data shows that about 40% of the over 97,700 people detained had criminal convictions, with only 8% convicted of violent crimes ^[4]
• Another analysis found that 45% of detainees had been convicted of crimes, 15% had pending charges, and 40% had no criminal record ^[5]

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original question lacks crucial context about how "criminals" are defined and categorized. The analyses reveal important nuances:

• ICE's enforcement priorities have shifted over time, with programs like the Priority Enforcement Program (PEP) designed to focus on "individuals convicted of significant criminal offenses or who otherwise pose a threat to public safety" ^[6]
• The nature of criminal convictions matters significantly - more than 70% of those with criminal convictions in Nevada did not commit violent or sex crimes as their most serious offense ^[1]
• Geographic and temporal variations are substantial, with different regions showing dramatically different percentages of criminal vs. non-criminal arrests
• ICE categorizes individuals into multiple groups: those with U.S. criminal convictions, pending criminal charges, and no convictions or pending charges ^[7]

Law enforcement agencies and immigration hardliners benefit from emphasizing high criminal percentages to justify enforcement actions, while immigrant advocacy groups benefit from highlighting the significant portion of non-criminal arrests to demonstrate overreach.

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question, while seemingly straightforward, contains an implicit assumption that there is a single, definitive percentage when the data shows significant variation. The question also lacks specificity about timeframe, geographic scope, and definition of "criminals."

DHS officials promote narratives emphasizing dangerous criminals, with Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stating that ICE is removing "terrorists, murderers, pedophiles and the most depraved" ^[8], while ICE leadership emphasizes their mandate to "arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens" ^[9]. However, the actual data reveals that a substantial portion of arrests involve individuals with no criminal convictions or only minor offenses.

The framing of the question itself may reflect bias by implying that ICE primarily targets criminals, when recent data suggests that between 40-71% of those detained or arrested may have no criminal convictions, depending on the dataset examined.