When President Donald Trump took office, he promised to crack down on immigration. He’s done that. 

Since January of 2025, at least 2,400 immigrants were arrested in Michigan alone. But President Trump and immigration officials are not following an orderly process. Officials are often skirting the law, or violating it. 

This was visible months ago in Minneapolis, when masked ICE agents shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti and thousands took to the streets. Here in Michigan, the work of ICE is harder to spot. But due to action in the courts, we’ve been learning more. 

Federal judges recently ruled that hundreds of people in Michigan were unconstitutionally detained as they never had a chance of being released on bond. 

For its part, the administration says it’s detaining the “worst of the worst.” But in many cases, non-citizens without a criminal record have been detained. 

So, what do ICE arrests and detentions look like in metro Detroit? What are the stories of those who’ve been detained? How are local police involved in the work? And, who’s fighting back? 

Violet Ikonomova is an investigative reporter for the Detroit Free Press. She spoke with The Metro‘s Robyn Vincent.

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