Multiple reports show a discrepancy between the administration’s own data and its claim that it is targeting violent criminals in ICE and Customs and Border Protection actions. 

According to an Axios report, ICE arrests of people with no criminal charges or convictions surged in June after the administration changed its arrest quota from 1,000 to 3,000 people per day. An NBC News analysis of ICE and CBP data shows that, as of August 14, only 29.7% of migrants in ICE detention had a criminal conviction and 25.2% had pending criminal charges.

A report from the Cato Institute found that “more than 93 percent of ICE book-ins were never convicted of any violent offenses,” while The Marshall Project found that “people with no criminal convictions at all make up two-thirds of the more than 120,000 people deported between January and May” and that “only about 12% were convicted of a crime that was either violent or potentially violent.”

Media Matters analyzed every Fox segment on ICE and DHS enforcement from June 1 through July 31, 2025. Of those 574 segments, just 14% (81 total)  acknowledged that any migrants without criminal records had been arrested in DHS or ICE actions.

Fox & Friends, the show with the most segments on migrant deportation actions (70), acknowledged that noncriminal migrants were being detained only 6 times.

The show with the most mentions of noncriminal migrant detention was The Five, often because liberal co-host Jessica Tarlov pointed out that noncriminal migrants were the ones mostly being caught up in raids. In one segment, Tarlov explained how noncriminals were being detained while a chyron stated, “Liberals sad that Trump is deporting criminals.”

Out of Fox News’ 574 segments detailing ICE and DHS operations, 80% (461 total) suggested that raids or arrests were primarily targeting migrants with criminal records or highlighted specific migrants with prior criminal convictions.

Of those 461 segments, 314 of them went even further in suggesting that the migrants being targeted by ICE were violent criminals who threaten public safety. In total, over 50% of the overall segments highlighted arrests of alleged violent criminal migrants.

Fox News’ prime-time show Hannity aired 38 segments about immigration raids, of which 87% (33 total) suggested that migrants with criminal histories were being targeted. Of those 33 segments, 32 suggested that the migrants targeted were violent criminal offenders.

Even shows that Fox News bills as news programming rather than opinion often misleadingly emphasized that the administration was targeting criminals in its immigration operations.

Fox’s flagship evening news show, Special Report with Bret Baier, mentioned arrests of noncriminal migrants in just 22% of segments, but mentioned migrants with criminal backgrounds in 63%.

Three of the five shows that aired the most segments pushing the “criminal migrant” narrative came from the network’s news shows America’s Newsroom, America Reports, and Fox News @ Night.

100 correspondent segments across the network suggested that ICE raids were targeting migrants with prior criminal charges or convictions, or highlighted migrants with prior criminal charges or convictions.
 

Detainees at a Florida immigration detention center the Trump administration has referred to as “Alligator Alcatraz” report that the facility’s floors flood with sewage and that they lack access to proper hygiene and medical care.  

Recently, a Massachusetts mother and legal permanent resident was hospitalized twice in 10 days while in ICE custody after being denied proper medical care for her diabetes and asthma, according to her attorney, who believes the woman was detained by ICE over a marijuana possession charge from 22 years ago that was pardoned in 2024.  

In March, the Trump administration sent over 200 Venezuelan nationals to CECOT, a notorious megaprison in El Salvador, where they were reportedly subject to physical, sexual, and psychological abuse. While the administration claims the men were members of a Venezuelan gang called Tren de Aragua, many have denied the claim, including a Venezuelan soccer player whose tattoos were falsely identified as being gang related. 

Media Matters searched transcripts in the SnapStream video database for all original programming on Fox News Channel for any of the terms “Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” “ICE,” “Department of Homeland Security," “Homeland Security,” “Noem,” “Homan,” “Lyons,” or “DHS” within close proximity of any of the terms “alien,” “illegal,” or “undocumented” or any variations of any of the terms “migrant,” “immigrant,” “convict,” “felon,” or “criminal” and also within close proximity of any of the terms “raid,” “round up,” or “detention” or any variations of the terms “detain,” “deport,” or “arrest” from June 1, 2025, the month when noncriminal ICE arrests first exceeded arrests of migrants with criminal convictions or charges, through July 31, 2025.

We included segments, which we defined as instances when Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids, arrests, or deportations of migrants or related Department of Homeland Security actions were the stated topic of discussion or when we found significant discussion of such ICE or DHS actions. We defined significant discussion as instances when two or more speakers in a multitopic segment discussed any such ICE or DHS actions with one another.

We then reviewed the identified segments for whether they included any of the following misrepresentations of the ICE data:

• Suggestions that ICE raids, arrests, or deportations or related DHS actions were primarily targeting migrants with prior criminal convictions or charges or migrants whom newscasters described as having prior criminal convictions or charges.
• Highlights of specific migrants with prior criminal charges or convictions or migrants whom newscasters described as having prior criminal convictions or charges.

We did not consider the immigration arrest itself as a prior criminal conviction or charge when analyzing the data.

If a segment included any of the above misrepresentations, we reviewed those segments for whether any speaker described the criminal conviction or charge as violent as defined by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, or aggravated assault.)

Finally, we reviewed the identified segments for whether they included any of the following context:

• Suggestions that ICE raids, arrests, or deportations or related DHS actions were primarily targeting noncriminal migrants or migrants that newscasters described as not having prior criminal convictions or charges.
• Highlights of specific migrants without prior criminal charges or convictions or migrants that newscasters described as not having prior criminal convictions or charges.