ICE detains Puerto Rican driver using license data shared with DHS

Inguynabo police halted Inocencia Rodríguez on July 10, and ICE officers detained her after accessing her driver’s-license details that Puerto Rico’s transportation agency had forwarded to DHS in early 2025. Rodríguez, a Dominican mother who entered the territory illegally in 2016, possessed a license under a local law that allows undocumented residents to obtain one, a program that has issued about 6,000 such IDs. Her attorneys, joined by the ACLU and a university legal clinic, argue the arrest stems from a covert data-exchange arrangement and reflects pressure to meet detention targets.

The government of Jenniffer González transmitted the data after a DHS subpoena in January 2025, and courts have ordered the department to reveal the process, which the administration is contesting on grounds of ongoing investigations. The incident highlights broader national practices where immigration authorities use motor-vehicle records to locate individuals, often without clear guidelines. Rodríguez continues to face removal proceedings while caring for her eight-year-old daughter.