Trump administration pivots from public raids to covert immigration crackdowns
After the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis, the Trump administration replaced high-visibility raids with quieter, more aggressive enforcement tactics nationwide.
The January 2026 deaths of protesters Alex Pretti and Renee Good marked a turning point for the Trump administration's immigration strategy, triggering a reshuffle that sent Tom Homan to Minnesota and saw Kristi Noem dismissed as DHS secretary. Markwayne Mullin, confirmed as the new DHS head, vowed to make immigration enforcement less visible, while the department dramatically increased 287(g) agreements, deputizing local police across the country.
Courts began batching large groups of immigration cases with minimal notice, and the Supreme Court ruled to end temporary protected status for many Haitians and Syrians. Congressional Republicans funded DHS with an additional $70 billion, enabling a surge in arrests that set monthly records, including fatal ICE shootings in Maine and Texas. ICE also deepened cooperation with the TSA, conducting more visa-related detentions at airports, and launched Operation Rotten Apple, quietly rounding up over 2,200 immigrants in New York. These moves have intensified enforcement while reducing public scrutiny, raising concerns about due process for millions of residents.
Why it matters
The shift to covert enforcement expands immigration raids and reduces legal protections for millions of people in the U.S.
How this story developed
- Aug 13 San Antonio immigrants live in constant fear as ICE arrests surge
- Aug 18 ICE released a draft plan to provide liability insurance to local officers making immigration arrests.
- Aug 22 San Diego County board approved a narrow vote to halt ICE and CBP firearms training at county‑owned ranges.
- Aug 23 An investigation found that 71% of detainee grievances were dismissed and only 8% were resolved in detainees’ favor.
- Aug 25 ICE began using a $45 billion allocation to shift legal ownership of detention centers to the federal government.
- Sep 1 ICE placed a mother and her adult daughter into custody after a hospital intake following a car crash in Florida.
- Sep 1 ICE carried out a raid in Memphis that arrested more than 100 people, the largest raid in the city’s history.
- Sep 11 A judge dismissed the deportation case against the Andhra Pradesh woman, yet ICE continued to require her reporting.
- Sep 17 ICE agent Christian Castro turned himself in to Minnesota authorities on a warrant for assault after shooting a Venezuelan man, and faces both state and federal charges.
- Sep 18 Castro entered a not‑guilty plea to the federal false‑statement charges.
- Sep 20 A man was wounded after being shot by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in North Austin, Texas, and taken to a local hospital.
- Sep 24 A federal appeals court has invalidated the Trump administration's policy of deporting migrants to third-party nations, mandating ICE to allow a genuine chance to contest danger.
- Sep 27 The administration filed an emergency petition to the Supreme Court seeking a stay of the First Circuit’s order.
- Sep 27 A federal judge scheduled a personal appearance for the man on September 30 and issued a temporary order halting his deportation.
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