How many ice arrested people have died in their custody

1. The headline number: what reporters counted for 2025

Multiple investigative reports and nonprofit trackers concluded that 32 people died in ICE custody in 2025, making it the deadliest year for detainee deaths since 2004 (The Guardian, Project on Government Oversight, Truthout, and other outlets) ^{[1] [5] [4]}. Major news wire reporting and charting services that rely on ICE’s official public counts note a slightly lower figure—“at least 30” deaths in calendar year 2025—because of differences in definitions and reporting windows used by the agency (Reuters, Statista) ^{[3] [2]}.

2. Why sources disagree: definitions, timing and “in custody” thresholds

Discrepancies trace to how “in custody” is defined and when agencies publicly log deaths: ICE reports by fiscal year and sometimes excludes people released shortly before death or deaths that occur after transfer to other authorities, while independent trackers include journalists’ and advocates’ investigations—and therefore often arrive at higher counts ^{[2] [6]}. The Guardian and other reporters documented deaths that occurred in detention centers, in ICE field offices, and deaths after transfer to hospitals while still under custody, which they included in their 32‑person tally ^{[1] [6]}.

3. The trajectory: 2025 as an outlier and early 2026 continuation

Analysts flagged 2025 as an exceptional spike—nearly three times the number of deaths recorded in 2024 and the most since 2004—attributing the rise to record detention populations and degraded oversight during rapid expansion of facilities ^{[5] [7]}. ICE was detaining roughly 68,000–69,000 people in December 2025–January 2026, and observers warned that higher populations and strained resources correlate with more deaths; four additional migrants died in ICE custody in the first ten days of 2026, according to government press releases and reporting ^{[7] [3]}.

4. Causes, accountability and contested narratives

Reporting and advocacy groups have repeatedly linked many of the deaths to medical neglect, chronic conditions going untreated, COVID and infections, suicide, and acute incidents like drug withdrawal; a Physicians for Human Rights study earlier found most reviewed deaths were preventable or possibly preventable ^{[8] [9] [4]}. ICE maintains that it follows notification and review policies and that detainees receive care, while critics say lagging inspections, delayed reporting and practices such as releasing people shortly before death can obscure the full toll and hamper oversight ^{[10] [5] [6]}.

5. What the public record cannot yet resolve

Official tallies and media counts converge on the 30–32 range for 2025, but full accountability questions remain unresolved in the public record: some deaths are still under investigation, ICE’s public detainee‑death reporting pages have reporting lags, and advocacy groups allege instances where releases or transfers complicate whether deaths are captured as “in custody” ^{[10] [7] [6]}. Where reporting does not provide definitive cause or whether agency failures directly caused a particular death, this analysis does not assert causation beyond the documented claims and ongoing investigations ^{[1] [11]}.

6. Bottom line

For the calendar year 2025, mainstream media and watchdog counts place the number of people who died while in ICE custody at roughly 30–32 individuals, with additional deaths reported in early 2026; differences between sources reflect definitional choices, reporting windows and ongoing investigations rather than simple arithmetic errors ^{[2] [1] [3]}. The pattern has prompted renewed calls from advocates and some lawmakers for stronger oversight, more transparent reporting, and independent investigations into preventable deaths in ICE facilities ^{[5] [4]}.