View source for Immigration and Customs Enforcement

{{Organization
|OrganizationName=Immigration and Customs Enforcement
|OrganizationType=Executive Departments (Sub-organization)
|Mission=ICE's mission is to protect America from cross-border crime and illegal immigration that threaten national security and public safety. It focuses on smart immigration enforcement, preventing terrorism, and combating the illegal movement of people and goods.
|ParentOrganization=Department of Homeland Security
|TopOrganization=Department of Homeland Security
|CreationLegislation=Homeland Security Act of 2002
|Employees=20000
|Budget=$8.3 billion (Fiscal Year 2023)
|OrganizationExecutive=Director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
|Services=Enforcement and Removal Operations; Homeland Security Investigations; Management and Administration
|HeadquartersLocation=38.88399, -77.02784
|HeadquartersAddress=500 12th Street SW, Washington, DC 20536, USA
|Website=https://www.ice.gov
}}
{{Short description|US federal law enforcement agency}}

'''U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement''' ('''ICE''') is a [[Federal law enforcement in the United States|federal law enforcement agency]] under the [[United States Department of Homeland Security|U.S. Department of Homeland Security]]. ICE's stated mission is to protect the United States from cross-border crime and undocumented immigration that threaten [[National security of the United States|national security]] and public safety.<ref>{{cite web |title=What We Do |url=https://www.ice.gov/overview |website=U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security |access-date=14 July 2019 |archive-date=June 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604010102/https://www.ice.gov/overview |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Enforcement and Removal Operations |url=https://www.ice.gov/ero |website=U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement |publisher=U.S. Department of Homeland Security |access-date=14 July 2019}}</ref>

The ICE mission is executed through the enforcement of more than 400 federal statutes and focuses on customs violations, immigration enforcement, preventing terrorism and combating the illegal movement of people and goods.<ref>{{cite web |title=What We Do |url=https://www.ice.gov/overview  |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement |access-date=July 30, 2018 |archive-date=June 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604010102/https://www.ice.gov/overview |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Enforcement and Removal Operations |url=https://www.ice.gov/ero#wcm-survey-target-id |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement |access-date=April 9, 2019}}</ref> ICE has two primary and distinct law enforcement components, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), in addition to three supporting divisions: Management & Program Administration, Office of Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) and Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ice.gov/about-ice |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement |access-date=24 November 2021|title=Who We Are}}</ref>

Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), which primarily deals with the deportation and removal of undocumented immigrants, is among the most public and contentious function of ICE. ERO maintains the custodial facilities used to detain people that are illegally present in the United States. In interior offices, ERO officers primarily conduct targeted enforcement operations to apprehend aliens engaged in serious criminal activity. For example, in fiscal year 2020, 90% of those aliens apprehended by ERO had criminal convictions or pending charges at the time of their administrative arrest. This FY 2020 arrest statistic includes 1,800 homicide related offenses, 1,600 kidnappings, 3,800 robberies, 37,000 assaults, and 10,000 sex crimes.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ice.gov/features/ERO-2020|access-date=24 November 2021 |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement |title=ERO FY 2020 Achievements|date=October 29, 2021 }}</ref> At border offices, ERO officers receive and detain undocumented immigrants apprehended by the [[United States Border Patrol]]. Undocumented immigrants apprehended at the border have significantly lower levels of criminal history than those arrested by ERO in the interior of the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gramlich|first=John|title=How border apprehensions, ICE arrests and deportations have changed under Trump|date=March 2, 2020 |url=https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/03/02/how-border-apprehensions-ice-arrests-and-deportations-have-changed-under-trump/|access-date=2021-11-25 |publisher=Pew Research Center|language=en-US}}</ref>

ICE maintains domestic offices throughout the United States and detachments at major [[List of diplomatic missions of the United States|U.S. diplomatic missions overseas]]. ICE personnel (special agents and officers) do not patrol American borders; rather, that role is performed by the Border Patrol.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/03/us/politics/fact-check-ice-immigration-abolish.html |title=What Is ICE and Why Do Critics Want to Abolish It?|access-date=July 5, 2018|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 3, 2018|last1=Nixon|first1=Ron|last2=Qiu|first2=Linda}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.factcheck.org/2018/07/calls-to-abolish-ice-not-open-borders/|title=Calls to Abolish ICE Not 'Open Borders' |work=FactCheck.org|publisher=[[Annenberg Public Policy Center]]|date=July 3, 2018|access-date=July 5, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/394937-ice-chief-to-protesters-were-not-the-ones-separating-families/|title=ICE chief to protesters: We're not the ones separating families |first=Aris|last=Folley|date=June 29, 2018 |access-date=July 5, 2018}}</ref> ERO and HSI operate as two independent law enforcement agencies and have completely separate mission statements. HSI is focused on the disruption of transnational crime, where as ERO is responsible for the apprehension, detention and removal of undocumented immigrants.<ref>{{Cite web|title=ICE|url=https://www.ice.gov/|access-date=2021-11-25 |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement |language=en}}</ref>

The [[Director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement|Acting Director]] is [[Patrick Lechleitner]].<ref name="leadership">{{cite web | title=ICE Leadership |publisher=U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement |url=https://www.ice.gov/leadership | access-date=January 13, 2021}}</ref> The agency has not had a Senate-confirmed director since [[Sarah Saldaña]] stepped down on January 20, 2017.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/05/us/politics/trump-ice-mark-morgan.html |title=Trump Names Mark Morgan, Former Head of Border Patrol, to Lead ICE|last1=Kanno-Youngs|first1=Zolan|date=2019-05-05|work=The New York Times|access-date=2019-05-06|last2=Tackett|first2=Michael|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>