94% of All Confirmed Aliens in DOJ Custody Unlawfully Present, Report Says

On Monday, the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice released the FY 2017 4th Quarter Alien Incarceration Report , complying with President Trump's Executive Order on Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States. The report found that more than one-in-five of all persons in Bureau of Prisons custody were foreign born, and that 94% of confirmed aliens in custody were unlawfully present, according to a Department of Homeland Security press release.

"While the administration is working diligently to remove dangerous criminal aliens from our streets, this report highlights the fact that more must be done," said Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen. "We will continue to pursue President Trump's immigration priorities, including securing the border, enhancing interior enforcement, and pursuing a merit-based immigration system, but Congress must act immediately to adopt obvious solutions to strengthen DHS and DOJ efforts to confront dangerous criminal aliens."

A total of 58,766 known or suspected aliens were in in DOJ custody at the end of FY 2017, including 39,455 persons in BOP custody and 19,311 in USMS custody. Of this total, 37,557 people had been confirmed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be aliens (i.e., non-citizens and non-nationals), while 21,209 foreign-born people were still under investigation by ICE to determine alienage and/or removability.

Among the 37,557 confirmed aliens, 35,334 people (94 percent) were unlawfully present. These numbers include a 92 percent unlawful rate among 24,476 confirmed aliens in BOP custody and a 97 percent unlawful rate among 13,081 confirmed aliens in USMS custody.

This report does not include data on the foreign-born or alien populations in state prisons and local jails because state and local facilities do not routinely provide DHS or DOJ with comprehensive information about their inmates and detainees—which account for approximately 90 percent of the total U.S. incarcerated population.