What is ICE and what powers do its agents have to use force?
Getty ImagesThe fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good, 37, in Minneapolis sparked protests and subjected the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to increased scrutiny.
ICE has made thousands of arrests since Trump returned to the White House, often in public places.
These actions have increasingly brought its agents into communities across the country, leading to resistance from some local residents who oppose their operations.
What is ICE and when was it created?
ICE is taking the lead in implementing the Trump administration’s mass deportation initiative, which was a central promise of Donald Trump’s election campaign.
The US president has significantly expanded ICE, its budget and its mission since returning to the White House. The agency enforces immigration laws and investigates illegal immigration. It also plays a role in the deportation of undocumented immigrants from the United States.
ICE was created as part of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The legislation created the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), with ICE as one of its subsidiary agencies.
What powers do ICE agents have to arrest people?
ICE views its mission as encompassing both public safety and national security. However, its powers are different from those of the average local police force in the United States.
Its agents have the authority to arrest, detain, and arrest people they suspect are in the United States illegally. They can detain U.S. citizens in limited circumstances, such as if a person interferes with an arrest, assaults an officer, or if ICE suspects the person is in the United States illegally.
Despite this, according to the ProPublica news agency, there were more than 170 incidents in the first nine months of Trump’s presidency in which federal agents detained American citizens against their will.
These cases involved Americans they suspected of being undocumented immigrants.
Getty ImagesWhat powers does ICE have to use force?
ICE’s use of force actions are governed by a combination of the U.S. Constitution, U.S. law, and the Department of Homeland Security’s own policy directives.
Under the U.S. Constitution, law enforcement “may use deadly force only if the person poses a serious danger to himself or others, or if the person has committed a violent crime,” said Chris Slobogin, director of the criminal justice program at Vanderbilt University Law School.
But the U.S. Supreme Court has historically extended great leniency to officers who made decisions in the moment, without the benefit of hindsight.
A 2023 DHS policy memo states that federal agents “may use deadly force only when necessary” when they have “a reasonable belief that the person subject to such force poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm” to themselves or another person.
Where does ICE operate?
Typically, ICE operates in the United States, with staff overseas. Its sister agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, technically patrols the U.S. borders.
But those roles have become increasingly blurred as the Trump administration has recruited agents from various federal law enforcement agencies to help with immigration enforcement. Border Patrol agents are increasingly operating in the United States, participating in raids with ICE.
ICE and other agencies have deployed hundreds of agents to cities like Los Angeles, Chicago and now Minneapolis, in partnership with other federal law enforcement agencies.
Up to 2,000 federal agents will be deployed to Minneapolis as part of the latest operation, the Associated Press reported.
What happens to people detained by ICE?
The scale of deportations during the Trump era has been significant.
The administration said it expelled 605,000 people between Jan. 20 and Dec. 10, 2025. It also said 1.9 million immigrants had “voluntarily self-exported,” following an aggressive outreach campaign encouraging people to leave the country on their own to avoid arrest or detention.
An immigrant who encounters ICE may face a variety of consequences.
Sometimes a person is temporarily detained and then released after questioning. In other circumstances, ICE will detain and transfer that person to a larger detention center, of which there are several in the United States.
While many immigrants continue to fight for legal status while in detention, if they fail to do so, they risk deportation.
About 65,000 people were in ICE custody as of Nov. 30, 2025, according to data obtained by the Immigration Project from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a collection of government data from Syracuse University.
Immigration lawyers told the BBC that once ICE arrests an individual, it can take several days for families or lawyers to find out where they are.
Getty ImagesWhat are the criticisms leveled at ICE and what opposition have its agents encountered?
Many communities have responded when ICE and partner agencies like the Border Patrol conduct operations.
It is now common for residents to film ICE agents as they make arrests. Some encounters between ICE and the public have become aggressive or violent.
During ICE’s operations in Chicago, Illinois, a collective of media organizations sued the Border Patrol. They alleged that officers used inappropriate force against journalists, religious leaders and protesters. A federal judge sided with the group, before an appeals court overturned the decision.
The Minneapolis shooting is not the first time someone has been shot and injured during an immigration enforcement operation.
There were two incidents in Los Angeles in October in which officers shot drivers, the Los Angeles Times reported. DHS said in both cases the drivers threatened officers with their vehicles.
ICE agents and other immigration officials have been criticized for wearing masks during their operations. DHS officials have defended the practice, saying it protects agents from doxing or harassment.
Where do Americans stand on ICE and deportations?
Americans have a complex view of Trump’s immigration control plans, a poll shows.
Just over half think some level of expulsion is necessary, suggests an October 2025 survey from the nonpartisan Pew Research Center. That’s about the same number as Pew found the previous March.
But the same poll suggests Americans are concerned about Trump’s methods.
The study found that a majority of American adults – 53% – believe the Trump administration is doing “too much” to deport undocumented immigrants. About 36% supported this approach.
