The Department of Homeland Security rejected claims from Democratic officials and immigration advocates that 2025 has become the deadliest year in decades for immigrants held in federal custody, accusing critics of misrepresenting data to discredit Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In a post on X, DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin responded to assertions from the Senate Judiciary Democrats' account that 30 immigrants have died in ICE custody since President Donald Trump took office, a figure that would make this year the deadliest since the early 2000s. McLaughlin said Democrats were "trying to twist data to smear ICE law enforcement."
"There has been NO spike in deaths," McLaughlin wrote. "Consistent with data over the past decade, death rates in custody are 0.00007%." She added that ICE detainees receive appropriate medical care and, in some cases, a "higher standard of care than most prisons that hold U.S. citizens."
FACT CHECK: Yet again, the @SenateDems are trying to twist data to smear ICE law enforcement. There has been NO spike in deaths.
— Tricia McLaughlin (@TriciaOhio) December 20, 2025
Consistent with data over the past decade, death rates in custody are 0.00007%. As bed space has rapidly expanded, we have maintained higher standard… https://t.co/dQvg1Nrh9o
The dispute comes amid heightened scrutiny following the deaths of four people in immigration detention over a four-day period this month, according to ICE notices reported by The Washington Post.
Those deaths brought the total number of detainee deaths in 2025 to at least 30, the highest annual figure since 2004, when 32 deaths were recorded. ICE data show nearly 66,000 people are currently in detention, a record high, as the Trump administration seeks expanded funding to increase detention capacity.
Advocacy groups and some Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns about detention conditions and medical care. Eunice Cho of the American Civil Liberties Union's National Prison Project told The Post that four deaths in one week represented a "clear deterioration of medical care.
Sen. Patty Murray (Washington) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (Washington), both Democrats, also echoed concerns over the deaths, with Murray calling them "appalling & unacceptable" and Jayapal urging officials to take notice:
"Within 15 minutes today, I got two back-to-back notifications of deaths at ICE facilities. 28 people have died in ICE custody since Trump took office. These facilities are overcrowded & are putting their own profits over health and safety. We need oversight & accountability NOW"
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