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Minnesota sues Trump admin over ICE surge
The State of Minnesota has filed a motion for a temporary restraining order asking a judge to end the ICE surge in Minnesota by the Trump administration.
(FOX 9) - The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) touts the arrests of illegal immigrants across the country who are considered to be the "worst of the worst".
These are individuals who have committed crimes ranging from homicide to sex offenses to DWIs.
Operation Metro Surge
What we know:
FOX 9 took a closer look at these 212 people and the crimes they have committed.
DHS officials say they have made more than 2,000 arrests in Minnesota since "Operation Metro Surge" began — that means a little more than 10% of ICE arrests fall into this category of being the "worst of the worst." A smaller percentage are violent criminals or someone with gang affiliation.
When asked how many of these people have been deported, DHS would not give a number.
What are the convictions?
Dig deeper:
Of the 212 illegal immigrants who are considered the "worst of the worst," here’s how their crimes breakdown:
- Violent crime (homicide, assault, domestic violence) or gang affiliation: 75
- Sex Offenses, Rape, Criminal Sexual Conduct (sub-category of violent crime): 28
- Fraud, Theft, Illegal Reentry, Trafficking: 45
- Drugs: 57
- DWI: 7
The analysis
By the numbers:
Of the 212 "worst of the worst" criminals, 103 are considered to be violent criminals — 48.5% percent of whom are violent, convicted criminals.
When you look at the overall number of more than 2,000 arrests in Minnesota, 5.2% of those arrested in ICE operations in recent weeks are violent criminals.
The data are similar to the findings by the CATO Institute, which showed 5% of people detained by ICE have violent convictions, and 73% have no convictions. CATO found only 5% had a violent criminal conviction on their record.
About 21% of the "worst of the worst" have been arrested for crimes such as fraud, theft, illegal reentry and trafficking.
Another 27% of the "worst criminals" taken off the streets of Minnesota have a drug conviction, and 3% have a DWI on their record.
Where are they from?
Big picture view:
Looking at the countries each of these 212 criminals are from, it breaks down like this:
- Mexico – 91
- Honduras – 22
- Somalia – 20
- El Salvador – 10
- Ecuador – 9
- Guatemala – 9
- Laos – 7
- Liberia – 5
- Dominican Republic – 5
- Burma – 4
- Columbia – 4
- Venezuela – 3
- Ghana – 3
- Iran – 2
- Bosnia-Herzegovina – 2
- Nigeria – 2
- Thailand – 2
- Sudan – 2
- Vietnam – 2
- S. Korea – 1
- Uganda – 1
- China – 1
- Gambia – 1
- Philippines – 1
- Kenya – 1
- Cuba – 1
- Costa Rica – 1
DHS response
What they're saying:
The Trump Administration and DHS have been conveying the message for months that the reasoning behind these surges in ICE enforcement is to "make America safe again."
Recently, DHS released the following statement when referring to the goal of the added ICE agents specifically in Minnesota: "Operation Metro Surge targets the worst of the worst who flock to Minnesota because they know sanctuary politicians will protect them."
FOX 9 was also provided this statement by DHS in December after several arrests in Minneapolis: "ICE law enforcement officers have arrested more than 400 illegal aliens including pedophiles, rapists, and violent thugs since Operation Metro Surge began," said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. "Tim Walz and Jacob Frey failed to protect the people of Minnesota. They let these monsters and child predators roam free. Thanks to our brave law enforcement, Minnesota is safer with these thugs off their streets. Instead of thanking our law enforcement for removing criminals from their communities, Tim Walz and Jacob Frey continue to demonize our brave law enforcement."