what is an ice detainee

An ICE detainee is a person who is held in custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE detainees are typically noncitizens who have been apprehended for immigration-related reasons, such as unauthorized entry into the United States or issues related to immigration status. These detainees may be held while awaiting decisions on their immigration cases or removal (deportation) from the U.S. ICE detention facilities are used to hold these individuals, and the detention is civil (not criminal) but the conditions draw from correctional facility standards. ICE has authority to detain some people mandatorily if they have committed serious crimes or discretionarily based on immigration proceedings. ICE detainees can be held in various facilities including ICE-owned centers, contracted private detention facilities, or local jails with agreements to hold ICE detainees. In essence, an ICE detainee is someone held by ICE enforcement as part of immigration control measures, pending immigration court or removal processes.