Undocumented Migrants Are Not Criminals, According to the Law: What the White House Did Not Explain

The administration of President Donald Trump has adopted a very strict approach toward undocumented migrants in the United States, creating an atmosphere of uncertainty and fear among the more than 11 million people residing in the country without legal status. Recently, the White House reaffirmed its position by equating migrants in irregular situations with “criminals.”

During a press briefing, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt stated that all individuals arrested in recent operations by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have a “criminal record” due to their illegal immigration status.

“It’s a big cultural shift in our country to see someone who breaks immigration laws as a criminal, but that’s exactly what they are,” Leavitt asserted.

However, under U.S. law, entering or remaining in the country without authorization is not considered a criminal offense, but rather a civil violation. In other words, simply being undocumented does not grant these individuals a “criminal record,” as suggested by the White House spokesperson.

Immigration-Related Offenses: A Key Distinction

It is important to note that crossing the border without inspection, categorized as “improper entry,” and re-entering the country after being deported are criminal offenses. The former is considered a misdemeanor, while the latter is classified as a felony. However, the vast majority of undocumented migrants do not commit these offenses.

According to a report from the American Immigration Council, in recent years, the U.S. government has intensified prosecutions against individuals who violate immigration laws. This results in negative consequences, such as family separations, and an increasing criminalization of immigration.

“The criminalization of these violations, driven by executive orders from Trump, has raised the human costs of irregular immigration,” the report states.

Trump’s Promise: Mass Deportation and a Selective Approach

During his election campaign, Trump promised to carry out one of the largest mass deportations in U.S. history. According to his strategy, the priority would be individuals who had committed crimes on U.S. soil. Since his first day in the White House, the president has implemented aggressive detention and deportation policies, publicly highlighting arrests made by ICE.

Although specific figures are provided for some detentions, the Trump administration keeps details about the profile of those detained, their nationality, and whether they had any prior criminal records secret.

“Only 52% of the 1,179 people arrested in an operation last Sunday had criminal records,” revealed internal sources quoted by NBC News.

In fact, the rest of the individuals arrested were people who had not committed violent crimes or even lacked any criminal history, except for their civil immigration violation.

Studies on Migrants’ Criminality

Several studies, including one conducted by Stanford University, have shown that migrants, whether undocumented or not, are less likely to commit crimes or be convicted of them than native-born Americans. These findings contradict the White House’s claim that all undocumented migrants are criminals.

According to Stanford’s research, “undocumented migrants have lower crime rates than U.S. citizens.”