Nine Migrants Have Died In ICE Custody Since Trump Took Office, ICE Head Says

Nine people have died while in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement since President Donald Trump took office, ICE’s acting director testified on Wednesday while pushing back on mounting concerns of dwindling funds and overcrowding within the agency’s detention centers.

The total number of in-custody deaths since Jan. 20 is just three deaths short of the same number seen in all of fiscal year 2024. Previous years since 2018, with the exception of 2020, when there were 21 deaths, saw an average of 5 deaths a year.

“We do conduct a thorough investigation on all of those,” Todd Lyons, ICE’s acting director, told lawmakers of the fatalities. “ICE, as I’ve said, is dedicated to transparency.”

Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is seen during a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security hearing in Washington on Wednesday.

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ICE’s website only lists seven in-custody deaths for this fiscal year as of Thursday. Lyons said its website will be appropriately updated with the correct numbers, as required by Congress.

Some lawmakers addressing Lyons before the House Appropriations Committee on Homeland Security accused ICE of detaining more people than it can safely handle and afford, however.

ICE, for its 2024 fiscal year ending in September, was given funding for 41,500 detention beds but it had over 52,000 people in custody as of last week, said Rep. Lauren Underwood of Illinois, who’s the subcommittee’s top Democrat.

“You are maybe one to two months away from running out of funds to support this current level of operations,” she told Lyons.

Lyons denied that ICE will run out of money and said that the agency is “working within our means” while also anticipating additional federal funds, in part through a budget reconciliation package that’s being pushed through the House. Lyons also acknowledged, in later questioning, ICE’s open request of $312.5 million from shifted federal funds that he said would add up to 60,000 beds by this year’s fourth quarter.

In all, Lyons said he expects ICE will be able to reach 100,000 beds, though he didn’t have a direct answer when asked by Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) whether ICE will still have a financial shortfall if its requested $312.5 million is received.

“I can promise the community, and I can guarantee that we’re going to financially work within our means to ensure that we do not have a shortfall,” he answered.

Lyons’ response follows reports that ICE, back in March, told Congress that it is anticipating a nearly $2 billion budget shortfall.

Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), addressing Lyons, also accused the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown of overreaching while disregarding health and human safety, resulting in the in-custody deaths.

“What we’ve seen in the Trump administration should send chills down the spine of every American. The fact is that the administration is not focusing on the worst of the worst, as it claims,” she said. “According to public reporting, the focus has largely been on immigrants who are here both legally and those who are here illegally, but who mostly pose absolutely no threat to the public.”

She cited examples of students with green cards and visas being detained, along with people with legal status and no criminal history or criminal record. Some detention facilities, as a result of overcrowding, lack access to toilets and water, and adequate nutrition and health care, she said.

The last in-custody death listed publicly by ICE was that of a 27-year-old man from Colombia who allegedly died by suicide in April after suffering health issues while in custody. His mental health appointments were twice rescheduled in the days before his death, one time due to staffing issues, according to ICE’s website.