Increasing Immigration Raids Spark Questions from Democrats for Explanations
The Trump administration's immigration enforcement policies have raised serious civil rights concerns, with reports of American citizens being mistakenly detained or arrested. According to legislators, ICE has deported U.S. citizen children along with their undocumented parents, reportedly against their families' wishes.
One such case involves Julio Noriega, a 54-year-old U.S. citizen, who was among those picked up in sweeps in early January in Chicago. Noriega was handcuffed and detained for 10 hours without his arrest ever being documented.
Between early 2025 and August 1, 2025, ICE made over 149,000 arrests of immigrants, including a significant increase in arrest rates compared to prior administrations. Among these, at least 674 potential U.S. citizens were arrested and 121 detained. Cases of wrongful detention and deportation of American citizens, including children, disabled veterans, and others, have been documented. Additionally, about 50 legal immigrants were deported without proper due process on a parole basis.
These actions have led to ongoing legal and civil rights investigations, noting violations of due process, warrantless detentions, and failure to properly verify citizenship. Reports of chaotic and abusive practices in detention centers, notably in Florida facilities, where overcrowding and substandard conditions have been documented, have further fueled these concerns.
Democratic members of Congress have been pressing for a full accounting of the American citizens detained by the Department of Homeland Security. Eduardo Casas, an attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said that citizens are being caught up in this broader enforcement paradigm that centers around mass deportation.
Casas stated that individuals are taken as far as detention centers, and then told they may be charged, but are sometimes let go without formal charges. He has been asking immigration officials for information about citizens detained and arrested during the Los Angeles sweeps this summer, but has so far been rebuffed.
The Department of Homeland Security reports that no American citizens have been deported, though at least three American-born children have been removed from the country, according to a lawsuit. The Trump administration has adamantly defended its actions, stating that DHS enforcement operations are highly targeted and are not resulting in the arrest of U.S. citizens.
However, the Center for Constitutional Rights and the ACLU of Illinois argue that DHS violated a 2022 settlement requiring agents to have probable cause to believe that a person is in the country illegally before arresting them and then reporting it. A 4-year-old boy with cancer was deported to Honduras, and a doctoral student was detained for 25 hours during a raid in Hollywood.
In response to these concerns, 49 Democratic U.S. senators and representatives have demanded the Department of Homeland Security release details on the arrests and detainment of American citizens caught up in its immigration sweeps. On Friday, they sent letters to the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General Joseph V. Cuffari and two other immigration oversight offices asking them to open an investigation into encounters with American citizens and "determine whether DHS is violating Americans' civil rights."
The letter asks the oversight bodies to provide by Sept. 5 detailed information on stops, arrests, detentions, and deportations of citizens, including a breakdown by month, location, reason for enforcement action, outcome, and length of time in ICE custody. The crackdown is expected to massively expand after Congress approved a $170 billion budget for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Deborah Fleischaker, the former chief of staff at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said that verifying somebody's citizenship can sometimes be complicated, but officials should be explaining how that works. Jesse Franzblau, associate director of policy at National Immigrant Justice Center, stated that ICE is "picking up people, whoever is nearby" and there is "a lot of racial profiling happening."
As the investigations continue, it remains unclear when a definitive resolution or outcome will be reached. The Trump administration's immigration enforcement policies have led to a large number of immigration arrests and some wrongful detention and deportation of American citizens, but the full extent of these violations and their impact on American citizens' civil rights remains to be seen.
- The Trump administration's immigration policies have raised concerns about civil rights, as American citizens have been reportedly mistreated, such as Julio Noriega's case in Chicago where he was handcuffed and detained without any documentation.
- ICE, under the Trump administration, made over 149,000 arrests between early 2025 and August 1, 2025, with at least 674 potential U.S. citizens among them, indicating a significant increase in arrest rates compared to prior administrations.
- Ongoing legal and civil rights investigations are being conducted due to violations of due process, warrantless detentions, and failure to properly verify citizenship. These concerns are fueled by reports of chaotic and abusive practices in detention centers, such as overcrowding and substandard conditions.
- Democratic members of Congress are pressuring for a full accounting of American citizens detained by the Department of Homeland Security, while attorney Eduardo Casas states that citizens are being caught up in the mass deportation enforcement paradigm.
- The Department of Homeland Security denies that American citizens have been deported, but a lawsuit has revealed at least three American-born children have been removed from the country.
- In response to these concerns, 49 Democratic U.S. senators and representatives have demanded the Department of Homeland Security release details on the arrests and detainment of American citizens, and have asked oversight bodies to open an investigation into civil rights violations.
