The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed that Donald Trump’s government will stop counting migrant deaths for 30 days after that they be released from detention centers.
DHS indicated that the Trump administration will eliminate the policy that required Immigration authorities to count migrant deaths even after they left the detention centers.
The policy was adopted in 2021, during the Joe Biden government. In addition, it required the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) to report on these deaths to the United States Congress and investigate their causes.
The elimination of this measure occurs amid criticism of the conditions in immigration centers and the deaths of migrants in the custody of immigration authorities. They reached their highest level in the last 20 years.
DHS justified the decision by noting that when individuals are no longer in custody, It is the responsibility of the authorities to monitor their status.
“It is a matter of common sense. It is not responsible to attribute to us a death that occurred weeks after one person left our custody,” a DHS spokesperson said.
He added that, despite the revocation of the measure, ICE “remains committed to transparency in relation to the deaths of people in detention”.
“The new guideline details the procedures for notifying, reviewing and reporting deaths that occurred in custody in a timely manner,” he indicated.
Thirty-two people died in ICE custody in 2025, the highest figure recorded in two decades.