What is ICE?

What is ICE?
ICE—U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement—is one of at least six federal agencies involved in immigration and one of two responsible for enforcement.

ICE was launched in 2003 as part of the new Department of Homeland Security, which was formed in response to 9/11.

How does ICE work?
ICE investigates and enforces immigration violations and removes people believed to be in the country unlawfully. It focuses on immigration issues inside the U.S. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection enforces immigration at the borders.)

ICE has two enforcement divisions: Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO).

HSI handles federal criminal and national security investigations. It’s responsible for “investigating, disrupting, and dismantling transnational criminal organizations and terrorist networks.” ERO is responsible for the apprehension, detention, deportation, and removal of undocumented immigrants and lawful noncitizens with violations, as it enforces immigration law.

Breaking immigration law is typically a civil, not criminal offense.

What’s an “ICE raid?”
An ICE enforcement action (sometimes called a raid) generally involves agents going to workplaces, grocery stores, streets, courtrooms, or other public areas to detain people suspected of being in the country illegally. These usually happen in public because ICE operations are conducted under “administrative warrants” signed by the DHS, not a “judicial warrant” signed by a judge.

ICE agents can also go onto private property with permission or after they receive a judicial warrant.

What are ICE raids not?
They’re generally not random… though they are often unannounced.

ICE identifies people to arrest based on prior intelligence, federal immigration law, and their internal priorities, then moves them into detention processing. While some operations are large and visible, many are targeted arrests that happen with little public notice.

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CHRISTIAN RESPONSE
While you probably play a small role in affecting U.S. immigration policy, you play a much more significant role in Christ’s mission to demonstrate his love to the world. As you seek justice, remember compassion for your neighbors—whether immigrants, longtime citizens, criminals, ICE agents, legislators, or people who passionately disagree with you on immigration policy.

“We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and yet hates his brother or sister, he is a liar. For the person who does not love his brother or sister whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
1 John 4:19-20 (CSB) (read full passage)

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