ICE enforcement activity in the United States

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has increased enforcement and arrest activities across several regions, including Maine, Washington, and Massachusetts.

In southeastern Massachusetts, a surge of operations in cities such as New Bedford, Dartmouth, and Fall River resulted in at least 31 detentions. Local attorneys and advocates report significant community disruption, including parents being detained while children waited at school and workers being intercepted near fish processing plants. Advocates have raised concerns regarding racial profiling, suggesting agents targeted individuals based on complexion or presence in work vans. Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey criticized the tactics as ‘cruel and callous’ and signed the PROTECT Act to prevent warrantless civil arrests in sensitive locations like schools and hospitals. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responded by accusing state officials of ‘putting politics above public safety,’ maintaining that those arrested were in the country illegally and many possessed criminal records.

In Maine, court records revealed that DHS deployed 159 agents from various regions, including California, New York, and Illinois, during an enforcement surge in January. This information surfaced during a lawsuit filed by Maine residents alleging that ICE agents violated the constitutional rights of individuals filming their activities. Plaintiffs claim observers were told they were being added to a watchlist, and some reported being detained at the border. While the government has denied the existence of an observer database and filed a motion to dismiss, a Department of Justice spokesperson noted that the inclusion of certain agent names in file names was an error.