Washington- Recent data from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reveals a consistent increase in detention numbers since mid-December 2024, with 47,928 individuals reported in custody as of April 6, 2025. This figure excludes individuals transferred to the Centro de Confinement del Terrorisms (CECOT) prison complex in El Salvador, raising significant concerns about transparency, due process, and compliance with Congressional disclosure mandates for taxpayer-funded detention operations.
Simultaneously, ICE Areas of Responsibility (AORs) along the U.S.-Mexico border have recorded a substantial decrease in Alternatives to Detention (ATD) program participation. The San Diego, Phoenix, El Paso, San Antonio, and Harlingen offices report approximately 6,500 fewer enrollees over the past quarter, likely corresponding to decreased border arrivals.
ICE detention facilities currently hold 47,928 individuals as of April 6, 2025, with 46.4% (22,249 individuals) having no criminal record. Many others have only minor offenses, including traffic violations. During FY 2025, Texas facilities have housed the highest number of ICE detainees according to data current as of March 31, 2025.
In March 2025 alone, 22,927 individuals entered ICE detention, with 19,122 arrested by ICE and 3,805 by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The Adams County Detention Center in Natchez, Mississippi currently holds the largest number of ICE detainees in FY 2025, averaging 2,161 per day as of March 2025.
ICE’s Alternatives to Detention programs are currently monitoring 183,635 families and single individuals as of April 5, 2025. Among all area offices, San Francisco maintains the highest number of participants in these monitoring programs.(TRAC)